And So Died All Warriors
by Miss Always Wrong
Summary: Meri and Aleksi were in some serious trouble. They were the only ones who knew why they were brought there and what was expected of them. All the odds were against them, the dwarves didn't trust them and Thorin wanted them permanently gone from his sight. Danger was ahead and people were going mad. And Meri-, Meri seriously was in need of a drink. M-RATED. First chapters edited
1. Prologue

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 _Prologue_

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 _Something horrible had happened. A mistake was made unlike any other. An offense._

 _It wasn't exactly planned to happen. It shouldn't have happened. This flawed decision was made by the spur of a passing moment, out of a pure impulse of a very foolish mind. It certainly wasn't thought through with. If something, it was madness._

" _Hello…? Hello…?"_

" _God… It hurts…"_

 _Infinity - that's what there was. Only space and emptiness. A black void. It carried on endlessly and lied in nowhere. In this endless nowhere there was nothing but a long line made of countless little lights. These lights were souls of once living beings - mortals that now were on their way to their final resting place. The void guided them there safely and surely, for it_ _was the only reason why it existed. It was the space in between life and death._

 _In the middle of all the soul lights, somewhere among this beautiful sea of softly glowing lamps, two had been different. Not hugely so, but different enough to catch the attention of someone with attentive eyes. These two shed different lights, seemed heavier and moved slower than those around them. They even smelled different – of a scent that easily seemed to bend down to His will. They were something that could be..._ _smithed._

" _Anyone_ _…? Please… I'm scared…"_

 _" _Help… Someone, help me…"__

 _There simply was no time to think twice. It was then or never, for once a soul reached its last resting place, it could never be awakened again, never again be returned back to the circle of life. The decision was made. An unjust decision. They were picked out like two glowing little berries, pulled away from the neat line of soul lights and then forced to leave it all, to change their destination. It may not have been planned in advance but plans could always be formed later on, details could be molded on the way._

" _I want to go home…"_

" _Save me… Please…"_

 _Perhaps it was cruel. Perhaps it was unfair. After all, they were innocent to the reasons why they were singled out. They were confused. Lost and frightened. Just like all the other souls that were momentarily stuck traveling through the void. They_ _had just gone through the sharp jab of death itself and_ _were exhausted and more than ready to accept their well-earned sleep. They never asked for it. Never wanted it. They had done nothing wrong to deserve such a cruel thing to happen to them. To have someone take away their longed-for reward of everlasting rest._

 **" _Yes, I see. I see now how you were created._ **_**Fear no more, children of men. I shall bring you no harm."**_

" _Please…"_

 _" _Help…"__

 _It wasn't meant for a mortal soul to make such a transmission. It wasn't normal to continue journeying_ _somewhere else after death. Such thing was unheard of. It was a punishment. Once taken from the sacred line, these two were denied of their peace and couldn't be easily returned back to this natural circle again. Not without the sincere blessing of the one that had taken them away in the first place._

 **"** _ **So tired you are. I know. I see. Tired, and suffered with life. My, my, such dim life lights... Hear me, I am**_ _ **here to collect you. I have need for you."**_

" _Please, let me go home already…"_

" _It hurts so much…"_

 _Perhaps it was all nothing but a simple coincidence how these two were spotted among so many else. How they accidentally fulfilled all the needed requirements to enable such a transfer and how their fates were turned upside-down right after that. Perhaps it wasn't. However, so it_ _happened, that without their permission or approval, they were forced to carry on into a second lifetime, into strange lands with strange time and strange creatures, all because of the will and whims of a higher being._

 **" _Now, obey. A_** _ **muse me. Show me what you are truly made of. Make this worth of my time and efforts. And, after, I shall reward you with your final rest."**_

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It was a night and a silence filled the air. A small lake was eerily dark with no living creatures in sight. Only the chilly night wind rustled the plants and branches every once in a while, other than that it was as if the nature around the dark water was sleeping too. Everything was in peaceful harmony. The nature was in balance, resting, waiting for the first gentle rays of morning sun to cast light and awake it again.

Then. Had the heavy clouds not covered the view of the sky and stars and moon, a blinding shot of a light, like a shooting star but much brighter, would have lighted the sky and given a fair warning of what was coming ahead. What followed this flash of a light was a curious sound of bubbles coming from the depths of the lake that just a moment ago was sleeping calm and still. The beautiful peace was ruined for the rest of that night.

A girl submerged from the water with a loud heavy gasp. She greedily inhaled the chilly air in sharp breaths as if it had been years since she was last able to breathe. The cold air above the water's surface attacked her lungs and face and made her feel like she had just broken through a thin layer of ice. Nausea rose inside her, she could barely hold in the need to vomit. All her senses were on fire, reacting to her environment in an unnecessarily sensitive way that gave painful little electronic shocks to the nerves all over her body. The girl's head throbbed and for a moment she really was afraid she would pass out from the pain. _Had she been hit by a truck or why did it hurt so bad?_

Things began to register into her brains. Little things around her that made absolutely no sense at all. Things that were completely absurd. Things that couldn't be real. Things that made her more and more scared of her current situation.

The girl was on the edge of having a panic attack. Her wet head kept on swinging from one side to another, trying to catch her surroundings while her hands and legs desperately tried to work together to keep her head above the surface. Her rabid breaths only grew faster and louder when it was confirmed that she had no grasp of where she was, nor how she had ended up in there. Funnily, the last thing she could recall was a dazzling bright light and someone screaming in an ear throbbing way before her brain shut the memory out with a sharp pain. _Was that her own scream?_ The girl choked out an ugly cry as the chilling feeling of dread began to creep inside her. _'_ _ **Good god**_ _, what is happening?!'_

It wasn't right.

It didn't make sense.

 _She wasn't supposed to be there._

The only thing keeping her from grumbling into a pathetic mess of a human was the awfully cold water that numbed her mind and made her teeth chatter together loudly. Her body was going into a shock. She knew it and it was only the matter of time before that happened. And she was still in the water - _'Freezing fucking cold ass water!'_ – meaning she would die if she remained there waiting for the shock to paralyze her completely. A strong instinct of survival took over her _._

 _She didn't want to die._

She wouldn't die this way.

She refused to let herself die.

' _Need to get myself out of the water. To land. Off the water. Find help. Get dry. Get warm. Come on, work with me legs and arms! Swim! Bitch, swim!'_ With sheer will of mind the girl forced her stiff limbs into action, thrashing forward and keeping her desperate eyes on the closest spot of land. She was determined to reach her goal, getting off the water was all she could think of.

Like snakes slithering around her, gentle waves moved on the surface of the dark water as she swam closer and closer to the shore. The progress looked ridiculous with the her stiff limbs and rough movements, added with the sudden violent jerks she made when making contact with some of the slimy water plants under the surface, but none of that really mattered for all she cared of was to keep herself moving onward. There was an odd clinging feeling on her legs and she realized with a panicking thought that she was wearing a _dress_. A dress that tried hard all the time to sink her down with its heavy weight.

Suddenly a loud splash came somewhere behind her. It startled the girl and made her accidentally gulp down some water. The splash was followed by several despaired gasps of air and a coughed shout of ' _help_!' that made her glance back towards the noise. Loud watery coughs echoed around the otherwise silent lake. _'WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?! WHY DO PEOPLE KEEP ON APPEARING FROM THE DEPTHS?!'_ She kept on swimming but couldn't ignore the new presence who clearly had managed to swallow a good amount of water into their lungs. _'Someone is really trying hard to drown themselves.'_

And so she took pity on this person.

"Hey….!" the girl gave a trembling shout to the hopeless being somewhere behind her. "The shore! This w-way!"

The coldness was really starting to grow unbearable and she felt her heart thundering like a maniac inside her chest, battling hard to keep pumping the warm blood into her body. Her eyes stung with the cold and blue lips trembled just above the water as she forced herself to move on. The shore was so near.

The scene behind her had quieted down and judging by the additional splashing sounds the other person had also decided to take up the task to get away from the water. Having a good head start, the girl had almost reached the shore and she searched for the bottom with her bare feet. ' _Why am I barefooted?'_ Why, indeed. That was an irrelevant fact, one she had no time to cling into at that moment. Her long wet hair clung all over her face and her eyes were tight shut in disgust as she wobbled through the muddy bottom with her shaking legs. _'Ewwww! I stepped onto something slimy!'_ Something slithery and nasty brushed against her ankle and the girl almost screamed out in repulsion. _'Oh please, no leeches, no leeches! I might just die otherwise.'_

When finally stumbling out of the water, the dress she had on still clinging onto her like a second skin, the girl shakily turned around to gaze through the darkness for her follower. A startlingly strong weariness hit her like a truck, making jelly out of her limbs and causing her to swoon around like a drunkard. _'No! I'm not going to pass out now!'_ She shut her eyes tight and tried to concentrate on staying awake and standing. _'At least until I see who's the other one in the water.'_

"H-here!" she guided the other survivor with a strength she knew would not last for long.

From the bottom of her heart she hoped the stranger wouldn't turn out to be some kind of a psychopathic murderer - and that she wasn't digging her own grave by trying to help this person. The splashing came nearer and soon she was able to see a head above the water making its way towards her. The darkness still blocked any better view of her follower.

" _O-oh shit_!" a deep, shaky exclaim came from the water, revealing this other person as a man.

Taking a slightly less impressive way to get out of the water, the man straight out _crawled_ his way onto the dry land with powerless shaking limbs. Once reaching the area of moist grass, he completely collapsed onto his stomach and muttered dark curses through chattering teeth. Mud and other slimy grime from the bottom of the lake covered him even more than the girl.

The girl also slumped on her knees and collected her limbs against herself all while watching the man with tired suspicious eyes. The cold night air made her even more frosty with her soaked dress and hair. She realized she didn't even know if she was injured or not but with her limbs somewhat working and all the mattering functions in her body mostly doing their jobs, she doubted she had encountered any serious damage to her body. _'Except that traumatic experience my poor feet had to go through there.'_ The thing she was actually very frightened of was the unusual exhaustion that was all the time giving its best to overrun her. She really did have to fight every passing second to keep herself awake.

"Good lord," she whispered to herself, eyes tight shut as the familiar panic was starting to creep up on her again. "What is h-happening here…?" She rubbed her eyes hard and was surprised to see her hands smudged with some familiar dark substance. _'What the-. Oh, well great. Now I have my make up smeared all over my face too! Waterproof mascara, my ass!'_

While the girl was having a moment with herself, the man finally rolled onto his back and took his first real glimpse of his new surroundings. The night sky above him was gloomy and full of thick dark clouds that efficiently hid all the light given from the moon and stars. Not much could be seen through the lingering darkness but what could be sighted was enough to tell that the scenery around him was that of a forest. Big green trees with really chunky trunks grew around, along with thick bushes and a great variety of odd looking plants. It all looked very curious and unfamiliar to him.

Too strange. And certainly _too wrong_.

"Wh-at the actual fuck, man..." the man whispered to himself.

Then suddenly a horrible thought flashed through his mind and his already racing heart trashed around his chest even more wildly. With one panicking movement his hand shot out onto his chest and aimlessly patted around the area in the search of something. Almost immediately the man found familiar shapes of a sturdy silver chain and two golden rings, and he let out a relieved sigh while clutching tightly the rings with his mud-covered hands. _'Praised be Jesus, they're still with me.'_ He still had the rings and that was all he needed. Everything else he had held no true value.

Around the shore blew a gentle night breeze and it chilled the already wet man to his core. The panic of losing his chain and rings vanished, only being replaced with a fright of something else. _'I'm-, passing out? What the-?! I'm actually going to pass out soon!'_ His thoughts were blurry and so shaken and mixed with the feeling of cold that he didn't even think twice when starting to undress himself. Two strongly trembling hands began to pull off the wet clothes, starting with his leather jacket.

A pair of soaked muddy boots went flying across the shore, catching the attention of the other human on the shore.

The girl let out a high squeak.

"Hey! Just, w-what do you think-k you're _doing_?" the said woman spluttered out, wide eyes looking at the man who was tugging off his wet, now dirty brown t-shirt and leaving him bare chested in front of her.

The man gave her a surprised glance, just remembering there was another person with him as well. _'Ah? Oh. Ooh. Right.'_ His surprise was short-lived. The presence of the girl didn't bother him as much as it probably should have because he didn't stop undressing himself. He only continued dragging down his soaked jeans and soon they too were tossed aside right next to the boots.

"You s-should strip too," he muttered shakily back and rubbed his shaking legs _. 'Wait-. Ah, fuck. That came out wrong…'_ "You'll catch h-hypothermia." _'There. That'll do.'_

If only the girl had some warm blood in her body she would have blushed and hard. _'EXCUSE ME?'_ She had just been given an advice to strip nude and she couldn't tell if the stranger was bluffing or not. _'Is this guy for real? And what is he doin-OH MY GOD! PUT THOSE BOXERS BACK ON, RIGHT NOW!'_

It all happened too fast and she missed her chance to interfere. All too soon the man was sitting there in front of her butt naked for as much as she could see. As naked as a goddamn jaybird and he didn't even look embarrassed of it.

The girl felt faint. She could only watch him dumbstruck with her jaw wide open, not understanding just how she had stumbled into this kind of a situation. _'JUST-. WHO THE HELL ARE YOU MISTER?! AND WHY ARE YOU SUDDENLY NAKED IN FRONT OF ME?'_

"W-what-, what _the hell_ do you think you are doing?! PUT ON S-SOME CLOTHES, SIR! NOW! _Stars_! What's g-going on in here!?" _'This is happening way too fast! I don't even know your name! I don't even know what you look like! MY MAMA'S GONNA KILL ME IF SHE EVER FINDS OUT!_

"Listen-," the man huffed out and curled up to seek warmth, "It's not like I like it any be-better to be buck naked here in the cold for all the world to see," he stuttered bad from the cold and tried to warm up by rubbing himself, "If you haven't notice-ed; it's a fucking night time, we're in the middle of bloody _n-nowhere,_ and it's a-already cold enough even without that unnecessary, and very _unwelcome_ , fully-clothed m-midnight swim! So worrying about _modesty_ is not my top priority right now!" _'When is it ever, actually?'_

The girl let out a shaky growl. She stubbornly blinked away the sudden rush of weariness and banged her shaking fist onto the moist ground, not really succeeding in making any kind of strong statement with that gesture. _'Well, thanks for sharing the facts, asshole!_ '

"OHHH! I _**k-know**_ it's cold!" she replied, pissed. _'You were not the only one swimming in that ice hell!'_ "But you want to _wh-what_? Get wild and party naked?! Oh ho ho, _in your dreams, mister_! I'm n-not gonna fall for-!"

"I couldn't give a rat's ass about a pair of tits right now if that's what you're thinking!" the man yelled angrily, cutting off her whining. _'Well. I never thought I'd live to see the day I actually say that.'_ "Would you fucking _think_ fo-or a second and get the facts straight!? Look around you!" he gestured wildly around them, "We're in the middle of n-nowhere! You see anyone?! You see help c-coming?! You want to go-o run into a fucking forest in the middle of the night to search for help?! To freeze to death in some random bush?! That's what _you_ want? Go a-ahead and be my guest, I'm not going to stop you, you stupid little girl!"

The girl swallowed thickly and shut her mouth. He was yelling at her. And she _hated_ when people yelled at her. Even more, she hated when they yelled at her when she wasn't right about things. It wasn't going well. Not only did she now have a random naked man there with her, but an _angry_ random naked man. Who knew what kind of a street thug he truly was? Would he hit her? Did he have a weapon on him? Would he do something else? _'Oh god, I'm going to die. By the hand of a naked madman! I'll be dumped into some dirt pit in the middle of nowhere and no_ _one's ever going to find my body!'_

Neither one moved. The girl breathed heavily and stared at the man with wary eyes, her muscles tense and ready to sprint off into any direction if he so much as moved his finger towards her. Though, the only problem with that plan was that she was already about to collapse on the grass from the exhaustion she was feeling. _'If it comes to that, I'll probably stumble on my first step, face-first onto the grass with the grace of a bloody elephant.'_

There was a moment of deep silence.

The man didn't seem to want to grab her – for now. And. He might have spoken the truth. The girl was cold. _Freezing_ actually. Also, she wasn't dumb. She knew what he was saying made sense, in a way. She had watched enough movies and documentaries of these situations to know that passing out outside in the middle of the night with soaking wet clothes on wasn't probably a good idea. And the fact was, she wouldn't be able to stay conscious for long. The odd weariness was sure to overpower her any minute now. Before that happened, the drained dress... it really needed to go. _'Mama's so not going to be proud of me. I can see this ending up in the news; Naked couple found passed out in the shore – see pictures on page 5. Oh, my, god. I've really done it this time… There's no way of explaining this. Mama's gonna whoop my ass when she sees me! She'll think I'm doing drugs and shit!_ '

A rough frustrated huff escaped the girl's mouth. She had made her mind. Very sourly and begrudgingly she began undressing her own wet clothes, not even sparing a glance at the man who was curled into a ball in front of her. Her dripping long-hemmed dress was a struggle to get rid of but eventually she managed and she threw it on the ground right next to her. The moment she found herself in nothing but her underclothes, a sudden memory flashed through her mind _. 'I'm wearing my new lingerie…! Oh god, **oh god**! And the dress…! Stars! I was on a date with Elias! I **must've** been, because that's why I bought these skimpy things… But why can't I- shit! Why can't I remember anything else?'_

With a despaired groan, she held her head in her hands as if clutching her hair would solve the problem of her sudden memory loss. She glanced down at her half naked state and frowned hard. _'Back to the business. There's no time to weep like some girl about sudden strange amnesias.'_

The strings – ' _Bloody leopard patterned too!'_ – were staying, this she stubbornly decided. Her bras on the other hand… She inwardly sobbed at the thought. They were with paddings and completely soaked and currently freezing the living light out of her precious twins. There was no going around this one. Those cursed things had to go. _'Lord have mercy on me, I've never been one for public nudity.'_

And that was how the girl then found herself in the strange shore wearing nothing but her soaked leopard printed strings in the middle of a night, and with the company of a naked stranger, could-be-a-thug, man. And with absolutely no faintest clue of how she had gotten herself in such a situation. _'I'm living a goddamn nightmare here.'_ The girl quickly copied the man's pose and gathered herself into a human ball, rubbing her freezing body. She didn't have the guts to look up to the man, feeling shy and very much humiliated of her current state. And she did appreciate when he gave no comment to that.

The tiredness was really growing overwhelming, they could both feel its numbing heaviness building inside them.

"Listen, I didn't meant-t to shout," the man suddenly muttered a dead tired but very sincere apology, "I'm just so fucking lost on what's going on here," he kept a pause and swallowed hard, " _Shit_ … You don't ha-happen know what this place is…? Or-, or… _H-how'd we get in here_ …?" He sounded so small and ready to break down.

Instead of answering, the girl gulped and forced down her tears _._ She shook her head at him, not even sure if he could see that gesture. _'This is not home. None of this feels right. I'm not supposed to be here. I'm not supposed to-. Stars. Just what is going on?'_ Hearing a quiet broken sob coming from her new companion, she opened her eyes to look at the man and his shaking form. He was choking, his face pressed against his knees. _'Oh shit, I can't take the sight of crying men! It's too much for me to handle!'_ She was automatically feeling sorry for him. ' _He came with me. Asshole or not, he must be feeling as lost as I.'_

"H-hey," she swallowed and scrambled closer to him, "It's ok. Look. Look, it's g-going to be alright. We just have to make it through the night. Someone will find us - the police, locals, someone…! Someone will come to help. Or, o-or-! Maybe this'll go away, maybe it's only a-a dream! We'll wake up at _home_."

The man breathed shakily and looked at her, searching for an eye contact in the darkness. His short soaked hair dripped water on his face and shoulders.

"It's not real? Any of this?" he mused out and was silent for a while. _'I've finally gone mad. Fucking nuts. Should've just stopped playing around with the sleeping pills while I still had the chance.'_ He shook his head at the girl, feeling tears rolling down his cold cheeks. "But, I'm _real_. I'm _here_. I'm n-not fucking crazy…! I know this shit is real," he muttered under his breath. Cautiously, he reached out for her hand and slightly touched her cold fingers. "And you must be real too."

The girl let out strangled sob at the man's words and suddenly squeezed his hand with her own. His skin was muddy and cold, but real. Real flesh and bone. Just like hers. It was a devastating fact. And yet she felt oddly comforted by the small human contact he gave to her. _'You better not turn out to be some knife-waving lunatic, you hear me...!'_

"I don't know," she cried brokenheartedly, trying to keep down the dread inside her. _'I want to go_ _ **home**_ _. I want to be somewhere familiar, and warm, and safe and-_ _ **god**_ _! I just don't want to be here! I-. I want my mama.'_ She let out tiny sobs, still clutching the man's trembling hand. _'And I want some goddamn dry clothes on!'_

The man let out curses in a miserable way and tightened his hold of her. The girl's breakdown had somewhat sobered him up. Suddenly he felt like he had the responsibility as the older one (it was an easy guess for him) and as the man of the two, to somehow find a solution, a way to make things better for them. The girl in front of him was a total stranger to him and a nobody to be honest. But she was just a _girl,_ surely not even passed her twentieth birthday yet, and she was _all he had_ _right now_. By gods, the other option was to get rid of her and be all alone, to survive this odd nightmare all on his own. He didn't cope well with being alone. He sucked at being alone.

"Fuck me, ok then, let's do this. Listen," he began hesitantly after coming to a quick decision on how to go on, "You need to trust me now. Alright? Hey, just, look a-at me," he shakily brought his other hand on her bare shoulder, getting her to raise her head to look at him through her tears, "That a girl, brave girl," he praised her and locked her eyes into his, trying hard to create a trustful bond between them,

"Listen. I-, I _know_ we're completely strangers here. And you got no reason believe I'm not some random pervert lusting after young lost girls, but-," he swallowed hard and tried to find the right words, his mind too numb to work out the charming manners he was normally known of using, "-b-but, we're going to _freeze_ in here if we don't keep ourselves warm. Don't know why, but I'm f-fucking _exhausted_ right now _._ Like death exhausted. That kind of exhausted that I'm going to pass out any m-minute now. You understand? You feel the same?"

The girl hesitantly nodded to him and so he continued. "So. So. Uh. It'll help - and I _swear_ if you know of any other-er way then _please_ tell me now – but. It'll help if we were skin to skin. You know, share our body heath. Through the n-night. You know... Uh. Yeah." _'Oh fuck. Just hit me already please. Man, what am I saying?'_

The girl swallowed through her silent sobs and looked at him dead in the eye. Her tired eyes blinked very slowly.

"O-oh." Was all she said.

' _He wants to-.'_ The girl blinked again. _'_ _ **Bugger**_ _. Now he wants to cuddle in nude. Well, that's just-. Bugger.'_ She tried to answer him but the words wouldn't come out.

"Oh."

"No funny business, I swear" the man groaned out, obviously thinking her silence meant she got the wrong idea. "It's simply for warmth, nothing more. I'll k-keep my hands to myself." _'_ _ **You**_ _don't have to, though, but I'd better not to say that.'_

When the girl still couldn't muster up any words for an answer, the man let out a loud awkward noise, let go of her hand and collapsed on his back on the ground with his hands on his face, immediately missing the feeling of another's hand in his. He began to ramble to himself.

"Aaaaaaahh, s-shit…! What am I saying, like that's going to change anything, aiii, it's no use anyway, we'll freeze no matter what, die in this g-goddamn forest and end up in the news, just-, motherfucker, just get it done with and take me already, I got n-no patience with this all this kind of bullshit, even if-."

"Okay, shut it already…!" the girl growled out when she finally grew irritated enough with him, "You've made your point clear." _'I'm already hanging around naked with a stranger in the middle of nowhere. So why not. Just another thing to add to the list of why mama's going tear me a new.'_

The night was already a complete catastrophe so it didn't really matter what decision the girl made, she was going to hell anyways. With hesitant movements, she crawled closer to the man and searched for his hand again. It was curious how comfortable it felt against hers. _'I'm not going to die here. I'm a survivor. One night outside wet, cold and butt naked isn't going to kill me. I can do this.'_ She pushed herself against him, guiding his shaking cold arms around her and hooking her own arms tightly around his goose pimpled torso all while trying hard to push down the obvious awkward feeling of knowing that her bare chest was currently pressed against his naked side. She breathed in a smell of mud and dirt and lake.

"I swear I'll knee you in your goddamn balls if you t-try something…!" she hissed quietly, not knowing what else to say in the situation. "If you _dare_ to use my trust for your advantage…!"

The man quickly collected himself from his little shock and adjusted his hold on her, bringing her smaller body even closer to him and making them lay down on their sides on the grass, legs tangled. He gave her no answer, just pressed her head against his shoulder while his other arm sneaked around her back to push her even more against his freezing flesh. This action came as natural as breathing from him as he was used to have another's body against him while sleeping. Her body trembled as much as his did and the cold moist ground under them did nothing to improve the situation. The man could feel the girl's heart racing inside her chest, matching his own. _'Stifler's mom be damned. There's a naked girl in my arms pushing her perky tits against me, and all I can wish for is to be at home, wrapped in my warm thick blanket, on my soft comfy bed while sipping some spiked hot chocolate and letting the air conditioning roar at full heat._ _ **Fuck me**_ _, this is so wrong.'_

The feeling of another's skin brought a slight comfort in the disaster they had stumbled into. Neither one knew what was happening, where they were, or how they had ended up into the lake in the first place. But, somehow they just _felt_ they were far away from home and from everything familiar. Something big had just occurred and it was downright frightening.

Surviving through the night was the number one priority at that moment. Nothing else was relevant.

It was time to finally surrender to the exhaustion.

" _What-… Is your name…_?" the shaking girl muttered against the man's cold collarbone, already halfway to sleep.

…

" _A-aleksi_ …" the man sighed against the girl's wet hair.

" _I'm Meri_."

…

" _It's… nice-t'-meet_ … _ya..._ " Aleksi slurred drowsily, giving into the tiredness.

" _Aleksi…_ " Meri whispered lastly, earning a low shaky hum from the man that was barely holding onto his awareness. _'Don't you dare to die on me. You hear me? I'm not going to take on all this madness by myself!'_

" _Please… don't leave me here… alone_."

That night, the two humans dreamed of strange things, of strange events that felt too real to be just mere dreams. Quick flashes of a mighty lone Mountain and big golden halls that were full of riches and treasures of every possible sort. Images of strange runes and of two hammers and a crown - a crown that later had a beautiful eyes-capturing stone placed on it, one that shined light brighter and purer than the sun itself. And then. Then a shadow of something big and terrifying above them. And _fire_. There was blazing fire and smoke all over, along with blood and death. And. In the middle of it all-.

In the middle of it all…

There stood a King.

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 _EDITED IN 2019_

 _"You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have." -Bob Marley_

 _I do not own Hobbit or any of the characters. Only Meri and Aleksi are my own._

 _Awful grammatical mistakes can be spotted from time to time. I'm still working on my English and often leave behind stupidly easy little mistakes that tend to drive people insane. I'm fully aware of that, as well as of the fact that I'm a shamefully lazy writer. Meaning it will take me a life time to post another chapter. A_ _pologies for that._

 _ **This is a M rated story and has unsuitable content for sensitive people** , such as heavy cursing, suggestive scenes, death and violence. Consider that as a warning of some sort. I like to write freely about tits and willies and naughty jokes. Yet, I'm not planning on writing anything overly erotic here so if you're thirsty for passionate sex scenes then you're in bad luck in finding them here, buddy. Romance, however, will be included. Romance in between Meri and Aleksi won't happen._

 _Review and tell me your thoughts._

 _With respect, love, and all that,_

 _Miss Always Wrong._


	2. Chapter 1

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Chapter One - Of stares and ogles

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 _Two years later…_

"What? Surely not?"

"No, no, I'm serious! Teressa said she saw it with 'er own eyes!"

"Ah, really? Teressa? Of all people?"

"Uh, yeah...? What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing. Nothing. It's just that... You actually believed her? I mean-. _You know_. She's rather desperate for attention at times, doing strange things and acting even stranger every now and then. Going on and on about those mushrooms and weird smelling plants. Gil even said that the gal tends to smoke the leaves of her plants, claiming it makes her... _see_ things. I think it's obvious she's made this all up."

"No? Really? That's funny, I had no clue! Not saying I haven't noticed 'er -, ah, _curious_ ways with but even so, why'd she do something like that? Surely she's no liar, there's no dishonest bone in that girl's body, lemme tell you."

"Well, maybe her imagination was running a bit too wild for a while and the poor thing got confused? She's... odd like that. You know, just last week she tried to sell out a story that something disturbing was happening down in the South. Something about a great shadow looming above, spoiling the land and-, ehhh who knows? I really doubt she has it all good in the head. It's the mushrooms, I'm certain. She's got a problem with them. An addiction."

"Huh, alright well _that_ does sound a bit off. How come I've never hear of those tales? But. I swear to you by my ma's hidden honey stash, this's no Teressa's mushroom hallucinations. I hear others whispering it too. All around the town! You know how fast the news spread here. I'm telling you, this's no joke. A dozen of dwarves waltzed through our gates just earlier today - accompanied by a wizard of all things!"

Rumors spread fast in the common bathhouse of the village in Bree-hill where it was more than easy to eaves-drop others. A girl who had no part of this conversation was left standing still in the dirty baths, her mind blank of nothing but the words just been said out loud by a completely stranger woman.

 _'A dozen of dwarves... And a wizard... In Bree-hill..._

 _Dwarves._

 _Gandalf._

 _Oh shit.'_

They were there.

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"Dori, Nori, Ori," Thorin called out while getting off from the back of his pony and catching the eyes of the said dwarves, "The ponies are in your care for tonight. Bombur, Óin-," he sought different pairs of eyes, "-see that our food and medical supplies are at their fullest when we leave in the morning. The rest of you are off. I will deal with the room settlements and dinner for tonight," he said and paused to look around their surroundings in the dimming daylight.

The village was getting quieter as people around the streets were leaving and settling in their homes for the night. Listening the growing silence Thorin felt unsure if it was a wise decision to stay there. It was the first night on the road since Hobbiton and all had gone all fine and dandy on the road. Yet still, if it were up to Thorin, they would have avoided all public places and just camped out in the forest as they would for the rest of the journey. But-, Thorin's eyes traveled over to Gandalf, -the wizard _had insisted_. For a reason or another, Gandalf had wanted them to come there. And as it was, Thorin didn't even want to begin to try and understand what sort of plans was going on inside the wizard's mind. Thorin had consented to Gandalf's peculiar urge to travel through the town, though he didn't like it, not at all.

"And make sure to rest and get your final purchases here," the leader dwarf continued after a moment of clearing his own thoughts, "There won't be a such a place to come across with any time soon and you most likely won't see the comforts of an inn in a lengthy while," he said and finally sent his company to their tasks but then hesitated before letting go of his sister's sons. "Fíli, Kíli-," two curious, young heads were turned back at him, "Just-… Avoid causing unnecessary _mischief_ during our stay," he sighed out and threw a pointed look to the youngsters.

The Durin princes grinned sheepishly at Thorin and dutifully nodded their heads before handing the reins of their ponies to the hands of the Ri-brothers and with swaggering steps followed Dwalin, Bofur, Bifur and Gloin inside the near tavern. Bilbo tracked behind them like a little lost duckling.

Balin caught Thorin gazing at the hobbit with a certain distaste in his blue eyes and the older dwarf just shook his head with a somewhat amused expression on his face. He knew exactly how much his King was against having a defenseless hobbit with them on the dangerous road and Balin couldn't help but to feel himself entertained noticing just how put off Thorin looked. Balin himself didn't really mind this little disorder in the air, not even the slightest. A little drama was always welcomed to him. He was going to settle down comfortably, place his hands on top of his belly and enjoy the show.

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Prancing Pony was a plain old shack of a boozer that for some odd reason never went out of business. Granted that the place wasn't the most disgusting shithole out there, it was still ugly enough to make one unintentionally frown while looking at it. Old, smelly and dirty. Certainly unhygienic beyond belief. As were all the people inside it. A dim atmosphere was what surrounded the whole building, inside out, along with the strongest smell of old musty wood and spilled ale. Honestly though, it was still comforting, in some weird way. Certainly better than the smell of piss, puke and shit that reeked in other similar places. And even if it was a tad too depressing, the tavern managed to serve well enough to keep all the tired travelers and local alcoholics somewhat satisfied, and that might have been the sole reason why it still existed to this day.

Tonight it was a quiet night. People were sparse, but some travelers and locals, mostly men with the exception of a few hobbit, sat here and there with ale pints and food in their hands. Some were laughing and talking rather loudly in pairs, and some silently alone keeping an eye of their surroundings. Some were there clearly for nothing more than with bad intentions.

"Got a funny feeling in me my guts, let me tell you. Never really liked this tall race of men in the first place," Gloin muttered once they had claimed their seats at their chosen table, "Don't like how lanky they look. Don't like the way they speak. Don't like how improper they behave. I swear this bunch even smell disgusting to my nose. Like lice. And shite. I swear they stench. Stings my poor nose. My poor, tender nostrils. They're butchering my nostrils here, these reeking men folk," he ranted on, eyeing suspiciously at some men at the bar, "And it isn't only the smell that's the problem, I just don't like anything about them. Arrogant buggers. No talent at all with anything they do! Bad miners. Bad crafters. _Horrible_ fighters. Nasty people in general. Rotten. Rotten to the core. Not much to like."

"Aye, aye, Master Glóin, heard ye well enough. Better to keep yer voice down when in here," Dwalin grunted at the rambling dwarf, stopping him from going on any further, "Don't really fancy bein' amon' them meself either but we'll manage one night. First thin' tomorrow mornin' we'll be leavin' this dump and ye don't have to smell them no more after that."

"Perhaps Master Glóin is right," Kili jumped in, partly agreeing but then his eyes were caught by a relatively nice looking raven-haired barmaid who walked past their table shooting a sultry smile at Kili at the same, "But some of their women… aren't really that bad looking, no?"

Gloin looked at the prince with unbelieving eyes, "Beg your pardon, lad!" he exclaimed, "Those twiggy-armed creatures with no trace of hair on their face? Durin, lad, you're getting me concerned! You don't know what you're talking about. Clearly, you haven't witnessed the sight of true beauty yet. Dwarrowdams! _Dwarrowdams_ , lad! Oh, now _that's_ some folk to admire. The real thing, take my word on it."

Kili shrugged at the subject and dutifully looked away from the barmaid. He wasn't interested in hearing lectures from his fellow dwarves just because he liked to linger his gaze on a pretty looking female. Even if the female wasn't a dwarf.

"Listen lads, hate to cut into yer nonsense," Bofur suddenly voiced out while his gaze was glued on the bar counter, a spark of humor shining in his brown orbs as he kept examining something particular, "Been using me sharp wit 'n brains here for some time now-," Which itself was joke enough to make the others smirk at each other. "Ye know, _observing_ things 'n such. Now hear me out here, 'cause I've seen something interesting," he mused out and elbowed his axe-headed cousin to get his attention too.

"Laddies, got five coins on me-," he dramatically presented the coins to the rest, "-'n ready to put on a wee wager to lighten up this dull evening. Ye old chaps ready to lose yer gold? Make me a rich dwarf, eh? See the man-lad at the bar?" he pointed at an youthful fair-haired man who was casually leaning on the counter at the bar, "Been watching what he's up to 'n this bloke is quite an eager boy for some extra attention from the barmaid over there. A bit much too eager, aye, I'd say. I'd say, he be the one causing some big trouble tonight. Certainly _not going_ to succeed with his efforts with the dame tonight, or at any night, at that," Bofur snickered and grinned playfully at the others, wiggling suggestively his eyebrows at the same. "Any of ye little ninnies dare to disagree?"

Being a bunch of addicted gamblers that they were, the dwarves' ears immediately perked up and all heads were turned towards the reason of their betting. The only one who lost his interest almost immediately was Bifur who couldn't care less of any business related to men-kind. Gloin, however, was twice as eager to accept the gamble, eyeing the human couple at the bar with sharp eyes.

"It's a real shame you know very little of the matters of romance, Master Bofur. I speak with the experience of a married dwarf and my experience just happens to heavily disagree with you. I'll be delighted to prove you wrong and take those coins from you."

Fili and Kili twisted their heads to see better the subject of their betting.

The brunet barmaid walked away from the counter to serve the pints she had been filling, leaving the blond man alone. With a smile of a dreaming fool, the human man gave a good long stare at the server's backside all while scratching his beardless chin.

Dwalin chuckled at that action. "Five coins on the behalf of the laddie," he grunted, amusement dancing in his dark eyes.

Bilbo, feeling out of place among the sturdy dwarves, rolled his eyes at the bunch and muttered something about rude folk without any manners _, doing inappropriate bets, eating their host's pantries empty, sticking their noses into other people's business-_. He was quick to caught himself though, for showing openly such ill opinions wasn't something a respectable hobbit ought to be doing. He didn't need another reason for the whole Shire to speak behind his back for his reputation was sure to get a big blow from the whole sudden whim of going onto… _adventures_. Bilbo shuddered at the thought and remained quiet.

"Do you really think so, Master Dwalin?" Fili's eyebrows cocked up as he took a second look of the now lonely man at the counter.

"The lad's lookin' persistent. Not goin' to give up easily that one," Dwalin shrugged.

Bofur shook his hatted head and let a wide dimpled grin cover his face. "Oh no. No, no, no. 'tis not easy to charm barmaids. Trust me, seen more than me fair of them!" he said and sent a playful wink to Bilbo, riling up the little creature even more, "A lost game, that little sonny is, just let me tell ye."

"Alright then. Count me in," Kili suddenly joined all while still watching at the human man who was sipping his ale at the counter, "Master Bofur's right-,"

"I'mma no Master of anything," Bofur muttered sarcastically at that.

"-he's not looking to be in much of luck at the moment."

"And just what do ye know of the matters of ' _bein' in luck_ ', youn' Kíli?" Dwalin smirked and got the rest of the dwarves to share a laugh with him while Kili flushed and crossed his arm in front of him like a teased child.

"Don't mind him, lad," Bofur gave Kili a toothy smile, "Just focus on growing out yer beard first 'n then we can talk about this whole thing with luck."

Kili ' _hmph_ 'ed and sank lower on his seat, his brother giving him a sympathetic pat on his shoulders as the others kept on snickering at him.

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Behind the musty old tavern was a puny little ramshackle barn and inside that pissy looking barn were the Ri-brothers who were assigned to tend after the company's beasts.

Nori, the middle brother of the three, was doing the job told just like his brothers, only he wasn't feeling as laid back as the other two. Something was off. The back of his neck _itched_ and it was that kind of an itch Nori always felt when he ought to be on his guard. The itch was kind of like his inner thief's sixth sense, something that had made him quite successful in his own art of crafts in the past. That was back in the days when the Ri-brothers had been living through rough times and sources of coin had been hard to find. To anyone asking now his thieving days were long gone and only something that belonged in his past. Only the itch in his neck remained to this day and _it had never lied to him_. Not once. He knew something was definitely _not right_ and it made Nori anxious enough that even the ponies acted jumpy around him.

Ori and Dori were normal beside Nori and they carried on with their duties without any worries of the world, clearly not sensing anything abnormal in the air or the possible danger lurking around the corner. But then again, they weren't thiev-, _e_ _x-thieves,_ and knew nothing about the warning itch. _Nori_ knew and was alarmed. He hadn't been a master thief for nothing. He couldn't see it, but he could _feel_ someone's eyes on him and on his brothers.

The itch was bad. He kept on glancing over his shoulders for the cause of his uneasiness.

A loud grumbling sound echoed in the barn, startling the dwarves from their pony brushing.

"Ori. Was that your stomach?" Dori's eyebrows quirked up, causing the youngest Ri-brother to blush scarlet. Apparently, his belly had started talking to them. Loudly.

Ori muttered apologies.

"Take the lad inside already," Nori sighed to Dori, almost a little too anxiously, "We're almost done here anyways. I'll finish up quickly and follow." _'Better to get them away from here.'_

Dori nodded his thanks to his brother and ushered Ori away from the stables. Nori shook his head and continued brushing the last of the ponies with a thoughtful look on his face. He paused for a second to scratch his neck. _'I'll be damned if anyone manages to catch_ _ **me**_ _off guard.'_ The dwarf wasn't left disappointed when not even two minutes later light footsteps came from the doorway. Nori didn't turn around to face the intruder, instead he smoothly slid his hand into the pocket of his coat, searched for one of his hidden throwing knives there and took a tight grip of it, ready to put it in use if needed. The pony he was taking care of let out a nervous neigh, sensing his tenseness.

"You've got some fine ponies here Master Dwarf. _Fourteen,_ if I'm right on my numbers" the stranger remarked with a soft voice.

' _A female then.'_ Nori could hear additional brushing sounds. _'And she knows of the company.'_

"Do you always lurk in the darkness, watching unaware folk, Miss?" Nori asked with a careless voice but despite it, he tightened his grip on the knife.

"My deepest apologies, Master Dwarf. I simply couldn't help myself when hearing there was a group of _dwarves_ running around. Fear not, I mean no harm to any of you. Though honestly, I already congratulated myself on being able to sneak up on you but it seems like I was proven wrong after all," she chuckled good-heartily, making Nori even more suspicious of her intentions.

"And just _who_ might you be?" he asked and finally turned around to face the female in question.

" _Now_ we're asking the right questions. But why don't we humor ourselves for a while and act like well-behaved folk with good manners, alright? That would include you slipping back that handy little knife of yours, so I can properly introduce myself without having to fear getting accidentally stabbed and end up bleeding on the floor."

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The company of dwarves sat on their table, handily extending the space by pulling another table close and adding chairs for all to sit on. Dinner was made of bread and different salted meats, brought by the tavern's two lovely barmaids (one of them being slightly _too eager_ to serve the youngsters), alongside with pints of ale to each. Thorin had informed them of their sleeping arrangements which consisted of the three last available rooms in the tavern, reasonable putting Bilbo, Gandalf and the Ur-family in the first, the Ri-brothers and Oin and Gloin in the second, and the royal family along with Balin and Dwalin in the last one. The rooms would be crowded, but that served them well, for dwarves were naturally comfortable close to their kin.

"By me beard, look at the lad go," Bofur snickered behind his ale, his amused eyes glued on the same fair-haired man who had been that night's betting target earlier.

The man was following the same pretty barmaid like some love-struck puppy and somehow during this the human duo had come close enough for the ones participating in the bet to hear some parts of their conversation.

The human man wasn't bad looking by any means in the standards of men. He was quite young, in his late twenties or early thirties. He wasn't the bulkiest or tallest of his kind, yet easily still towering all the dwarves. He wore a simple clean dark green tunic along with a pair of comfy trousers and had no doubt taken a bath just moments ago, judging by his still slightly wet short blondish hair. The man had warm brown eyes with slight smile lines. A faint scar around the length of a needle was visible on his left brow leaving that small line completely hairless. He had no beard, save from a small stubble, but his nose was straight and his jaw strong, something that told well that he was indeed a man and not a boy anymore despite the lack of facial hair. His lips were quite small and constantly pulled into a warm playful grin. He almost as if radiated this roguish air as he kept on pestering the poor brown-haired girl next to him.

"I'm trying hard to do me job here, Mister. Ye're disturbing me work," the barmaid sighed as the man had followed her to collect empty plates from an abandoned table.

"Oh? Let me work with you, beautiful. I swear, I'll be following your orders like the good boy that I am," the man winked at her, speaking in a strange rough accent, and then proceeded to help her gather the dishes.

"I'll get in trouble if me guests start doing me job," the miss tried to silently tell him off, but a small smile on the corner of her lips betrayed her real thoughts.

"Is that so? I don't want to see you in trouble," the man murmured and caught her eyes in an intense stare, "But do you want me to go? You say the word and I'll back off and leave you be, pretty girl. You have all the right to do that."

The barmaid blushed faintly and quickly broke the eye contact to collect all the remaining plates from the table. "Shouldn't ye be after Enna?" she changed the subject with a quiet voice, "She's the one they're all after. She's tons prettier than me..."

The blond man cocked his head to the side, searching for her eyes again, not succeeding. The barmaid was too shy to take any part in his games.

"I wouldn't know of this Enna's beauty. I haven't taken my eyes off _you_ during the whole night, you gorgeous captivating little creature. Just what have you done to me? What kind of a spell have you cast on me?" he whispered and reached out for one of her brown locks that had escaped from her bun and gently placed it behind her ear, "accidentally" brushing his thumb down her earlobe.

The girl froze to stare at him. Her dark grey eyes were locked into his deep warm brown ones, getting stuck and lost in the intensity of them. Then the barmaid blinked, breaking the heated moment and quickly turned on her heels to carry away the dirty dishes, her face red as ever. As she hurried away, the man was left leaning against the table with a knowing smile and an appreciating glint in his playful eyes, admiring the maid's backside once again.

"... Hem. What. Just happened?" Kili muttered to Bofur, his jaw slightly open while still watching the man who kept on lounging couple tables away from theirs.

Bofur frowned slightly and glanced at Gloin and Dwalin to see if they had witnessed the same scene as well. "Means, if the lad keeps on like this, I'mma loose me coins pretty soon," he grumbled when he caught Dwalin's smug eyes giving him a knowing wink.

Kili turned back to the blond human with a confused face.

The man in question suddenly turned his head to catch Kili staring at him. His brows were quick to knot together as his eyes traveled from Kili to the rest of the company in the dark corner. Not a second later, his brown eyes went wide open in an alarmed way. With a panicked ' _Ohgoddamnm_ e _!_ ' the man jumped up on his feet and made a rushed turn, almost hitting his knee on one of the chairs around him, and then clumsily hurried to exit the tavern. The main door was shut after him with a bang.

Kili was left feeling more confused than before, looking at the empty space where the man had sat just a moment ago.

"Frightened him with one look, ye did," Bofur chuckled to the youngster and gave a slap of recognition on his shoulder, "That a lad! Used the good ol' Durin's evil eye to make him scurry away, that poor whelp of a man! Almost stumbled on his own feet, in such a rush he was!"

"Huh? Me? Ah! Oh, well, you know..." Kili swallowed his confusion, cleared his throat and gave the hatted dwarf a toothy smile, "It's my natural strong dwarvish charms that makes them shake in fear and flee with tails in between their legs. There is no man in this place who could beat me in a duel. They know that as well."

Bofur gave out a loud booming laughter - one that shook his whole being and made him lean onto the table with his elbows. "Strong dwarvish charms ye say! Woo boy, what a talk!" he kept on laughing and banging the table with his fists, "Quite the claims, young Kíli, quite the claims indeed! Can't wait the day an unlucky fella comes into yer way picking a fight. Have to see with me own two eyes the day ye can finally prove yerself!"

Kili gave him an offended look. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were mocking me! And here I already thought we started in very good terms and with a mutual understanding, Master Bofur!"

"Now, now, don't go getting all uptight," Bofur chuckled a little out of breath after his long laughter, "Little fun never hurt anyone, aye? 'n I'mma no 'Master' of anything, young Kili. Don't go around calling me such. Ye're giving them folks the wrong sort of image. Got a reputation to maintain after all."

As their little bickering went on, at the other side of the table, Ori nudged Dori's sleeve.

"Brother... Nori hasn't still returned from the stables. Shouldn't he be back already?" he asked a little restless, making few others near him to look around to see if the youngster was right.

Thorin looked questionably at Dori, who wore a slight frown.

"Almost all of the ponies were looked after when we left. Nori is surely taking his time," the silver braided dwarf mused out, suddenly getting worried of his other little brother.

More glances were exchanged.

"Aye… Ain't nothin' stoppin' a dwarf from gettin' his share of food. He's a fast lad, it's takin' too lon' for him..." Dwalin murmured and locked his eyes on Thorin's, both starting to feel suspicious.

The hobbit eyed the company in a slight distress, fearing they would end up doing something extremely loud and… violent.

"Let's not jump into any conclusions yet! There are-, there are numerous sensible reasons as to why he is running late," Bilbo spoke out quickly, sensing the growing distrust in the company.

"I'd better go and see-," Dori was about to stand up when the bar's door suddenly opened again and revealed the missing star-headed dwarf stepping inside and looking around for his companions.

" _See,_ now," Bilbo sighed in relief.

Nori walked to them, his eyes slightly distracted and glancing all over the tavern.

Dori squinted his eyes at him, noticing the strange behavior right away. "Where were you? And what did you do this time?" he questioned, knowing something was up.

"Where is the Tharkûn?" Nori ignored his brother and looked at the others for an answer.

"Gandalf left after we paid the tavern keeper." Thorin narrowed his eyes at the strange question. "What is the matter?"

Nori pursed his lips together and seemed to be lost in thought. _'The girl was lying, must've been. There's just no way. A sneaky little liar she was, just like all these men. I shouldn't worry over nothing.'_ He shook his head and took the last available seat between Bombur and Oin.

"It's-, it's nothing. I'm sure. It can wait. I'm starved and ready to sit down," he grumbled and started lapping the leftover food on his plate, ready to forget the whole strange encounter in the stables.

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When the knock came, Gandalf had been deep in his thoughts inside his room. He had been expecting the soft knock on the door for quite some time already and so without wasting any more time he moved to open the door for his long-waited guests.

He had waited for two to come, but only one was there.

Gandalf was greeted by a pair of baby blue eyes that blinked at him in surprise.

On the hallway stood a short human girl with a blond French braid, wearing a big bulky coat, a green oversized tunic and a pair of baggy trousers. The ridiculously loose-fitting clothes did their job in hiding under a young little thing with a roundish face, big blue eyes and straight-bridged nose. The girl's face spoke of a girly softness, but it was her eyes which stared unyielding at anything in her way that upgraded her whole gentle appearance into that of a strong-willed, witty looking person. Though, at the moment, the girl clearly wasn't on a warpath and so gave out impossible amount of cheerful energy in a Duracell Bunny kind of way as she practically bounced on her feet at the sight of Gandalf, beaming like a child. Her pale lips which were pulled into a friendly smile, revealing a single dimple on her right cheek.

" _Gandalf_!" she sighed out as if a great burden had been lifted off her shoulders, "Thank the stars! It's been too long, you sly wizard! You have no idea how much I've missed your mystic wizardly presence!"

Gandalf gave her a good-humored chuckle and made room for her to step inside. "Better late than never, my dear. It's good to see you, Meri. I'm relieved to know you're still keen on taking a part in this quest. You had me worried there for a second! I thought we were supposed to meet right away when arriving here. But oh well, I believe some exchanges of views are in order, yes? First, do tell me dear, where have you lost our dear boy Aleksi?"

The girl stepped inside and looked at him with a grim face, her dimpled smiled long gone. It was almost amusing how quickly her eyes changed from soft and kind to hard and serious.

"That _idiot-_ ," she groaned, looking dead tired and ready to give up on her life, "-is the very reason why I'm running late. He was supposed to come and fetch me from the bathhouse when seeing the first glimpse of the company, and yet here I am - uninformed, and _late_. And without Aleksi. Were the women of this village not so keen on gossiping about every single thing that happens around this little town, I might still be there washing my hair, blissfully unaware of your arrival. But that's not even the best part of this all! Ohhh no. You want to know what's the best part? It's that I know exactly _why_ Aleksi never came there to get me. Ohhh, I have a pretty accurate idea of what he's doing at this very moment..." the girl growled and a something dark flashed through her eyes, "One day, Gandalf this I swear, one day I'll finally have enough of his cursed _skirt chasing,_ and might just **murder** that man in cold blood."

Gandalf blinked at her words and moved quickly to close the door as the girl kept on muttering death threats. The wizard sported a faint smirk behind his beard and a spark of humor lighted his eyes in a rather scary way. _'Oh, this will prove to be amusing for me.'_ He stroked his beard in though, letting Meri go on with her grumblings for a while more. _'Yes. Most amusing indeed.'_

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Meri's heart was racing. Ever since she had seen Nori, _talked_ with Nori, her heart hadn't stopped racing in her chest. She was going to meet them all. She was actually going to see each and every one of them in real flesh, living and breathing, right in front of her. She would hear them. Smell them. _'How long have I been dreaming of them? Of this adventure? Of_ _ **Erebor**_ _? Oh boy. Oh stars. I'm going to have a heart attack and die before even meeting them. I need Aleksi. Where the hell is that man?'_

Gandalf was leading her to the bar and giving amused chuckles at her quickly paling face. Meri pursed her lips together and looked ahead.

She saw them.

All of them. Together in a dark corner of the bar, eating and drinking and joking. Bofur's merry laughter boomed loudly around the place, and once hearing that Meri was sure she was dreaming again. _'That's it. I can't do this. I'm so close that it hurts, but I can't. Sorry, I'm done and out. It's ridiculous but it's just too much. Stars. I_ _will_ _piss on myself.'_

Meri was left behind standing frozen in the middle of a hallway while the unaware wizard just continued walking on.

"Thorin-," Gandalf spoke when he reached the dwarves and Bilbo, "-a moment, please? I have some matters to discuss with you privately, and someone I want to introduce you to," the wizard said and was about to reach for the girl behind him, only to find nothing but air there. "Where in Arda-?" he muttered out and searched for Meri, quickly noticing her standing frozen and alone quite a way back at the hallway. "Valar help me with that girl…"

"Gandalf, what is the meaning of this?" Thorin voiced out while Dwalin and Balin sent the wizard equally questionable looks.

In his seat, Nori paused in in the middle of biting his bread, following the situation. His face suddenly paled sheet white as his eyes noticed a familiar blond head in the distance. _'Oh, this is bad...'_

"No need to look so concerned, all will be explained. Now if you may Master Dwarf, this way. First, I believe we have to snap someone back to the presence," Gandalf sighed and was pleased to notice Thorin following him without giving too much of a fight.

Meri was so deep in her own world that her blank unblinking eyes couldn't register the wizard and dwarf walking towards her. _'I'm so pathetic. Such a_ _ **coward**_ _. I've worked so hard for this. Aleksi beat my arse so many times, and pushed and pushed and pushed me for this. And what happens? In the end, I'm thinking of bolting off and giving up on everything!'_

"My dear girl," Gandalf's voice startled her awake, "- _whenever_ you decide to grant us the time, I would like you to meet Thorin Oakenshield," he chuckled at her frightened expression and nodded towards the impassive-looking dwarf standing next to him.

Meri's eyes widened. _'When did Gandalf-? Goddammmmn.'_

The sight of Thorin in front of her sent an explosion of feelings inside of her. _'I can't believe. He's here. He's_ _ **here.**_ _'_ Everything she had ever learned about the dwarf flashed through her mind in a nonsensical matter. He was more than she expected, her dreams did him no justice for his figure was a saintly sight in its own kind of a rugged way. The very purpose why she was in Middle Earth was standing right in front of her. _'Thorin Oakenshield. You're-. Oh my god.'_ She had to swallow. _'You're_ _ **alive**_ _._ ' The range of feelings was tearing her apart, and making her eyes sting. _'You're here. I've finally found you.'_

The exiled King under the Mountain stood tall(ish) and proud in front of her, as if owning the very space under his feet as well as the air that surrounded him. His features were dark and unyielding and clearly bred as a higher class. The clothes on his short and sturdy body were made of finer materials, though still not as nice as he was probably used to wear back in the days. Unlike the other older dwarves, he had his beard trimmed short and the long, dark hair that rested on his wide shoulders free of any braids but two. Meri knew it had a meaning to in the dwarven culture, but couldn't think any further of the matter when her eyes caught the sight of his unbelievably pale blue ones. One could only describe them as 'as blue as Durin's' for there was no other blood line in mortals that could own such a shade of color in their eyes. But as beautiful as his eyes were, they were also loaded with a big burden - hardened into steel in such a way Meri couldn't see a thing past that wall.

"Thorin Oakenshield," she finally whispered out, clenching her jaw as new burning feelings flashed through her. She gave him one quick and very clumsy curtsy. "My name is Meri Karhu, sir. At your service." she added the latter part quickly, remembering that it was polite for dwarves, "Ah-, forgive my-, my strange behavior at the moment, Master Oakenshield. It's just-I've waited quite long for this day to arrive."

Thorin blinked and nodded his head uncertainly, giving her a wary look. The girl spoke in a rough accent and looked… strange. A foreigner. She obviously was a daughter of men, that much was clear, but her short slight figure, as well as other little details on her were confusing him. As was the fact that she was clearly wearing men's clothing, which was of course usual for female rangers and even for some she-elves, but she clearly was neither. He hadn't come across with such a woman before, everything on her seemed unfamiliar to him. Thorin wasn't friends with unfamiliar matters and so he automatically heard the warning bells ringing inside his head. A frown wasn't far from his face.

"Well met, Miss _Kaar-hu_ ," the dwarf pronounced her name uncertainly, like he was carefully trying to taste it before chewing, not missing the spark of humor in the girl's blue eyes after he had done this, "Though, I must admit I wasn't aware we were supposed to meet anyone. Gandalf, what is the meaning of this? Why is she here?" he continued in a troubled voice, turning back to the wizard, very unamused.

Gandalf cleared out his throat, trying to mask his small nervousness. "Ah, well but, I invited her here of course. It is as I promised you Thorin, I am to find you your burglar-," he said, glancing at where Bilbo was seated and then looking back at Thorin, "- _along_ with some other sources of additional aid for the journey. Miss Meri here is included in that last part," the wizard smiled to him with a mischievous spark in his eyes.

" _Other sources of_ -," Thorin muttered and then growled under his breath, his eyes darkening for a moment as he finally realized what this all meant and why Gandalf had insisted them to come into the village in the first place.

Then he took a deep calming breath, turned back to the girl and gave her a quick once over, before slowly turning his seething sapphire eyes back to Gandalf. If a look could cast fire on someone, Gandalf would have found himself suffering some pretty serious third-class burns right there.

The two males stared each other in a heavy silence.

" **No.** " was Thorin's painfully slow answer.

Which was met with a tight-lipped smile from Gandalf.

"Oh, but, _yesss_." was his equally slow reply.

A fight was about to break down. All the signs were there for first sparks to start flying around. Meri had to shift on her feet to ease the pressure she was feeling. Her gaze bounced from Thorin to Gandalf, taking in their serious faces and unyielding eye-contact which was as intense as one could get without crossing the line of being, well, on the romantic side.

"Gandalf. _No._ " Thorin spoke out after the tense silence.

Gandalf's eyes narrowed but kept on with the staring contest. "This decision has already been made two years ago, and you have nothing to say to this. Meri is a valuable friend to have, one that you will learn to appreciate in time. She will come with us on this quest."

Thorin let out an ugly sneer at the wizard. " _Two years ago_? You're delirious, Gandalf. Just what does she have that makes her so important for the journey? Wilderness is no place for a woman and what you ask of me is a disgraceful thing to do. You have no right to send her to her death. Just like you had no right to do that to the Halfling."

"Hem," the girl suddenly interrupted them, looking quite uncomfortable with the whole situation."Gentlemen, I'm right _here,_ and can speak on my own behalf. I think what we need right now is to calm ourselves, sit down and-."

"I have every right to bring her along!" Gandalf boomed, cutting off the girl like whatever she wanted to say held no meaning, making her blink at the wizard in a what-the-hell kind of way, "Her fate is to be included in this adventure and there is no other way!"

Meri moved on from the surprise of getting talked over to, and turned to Thorin. "Gandalf is speaking the truth, you know. I don't mean to sound rude, but I'll most likely just follow you anyway-,"

"Her place is not in the company or in this quest!" Thorin argued heatedly back to Gandalf, bluntly ignoring Meri and her bewildered look when she was, yet again, cut off from the conversation, "She is nothing but a _man_ child, for Mahal's sake, barely old enough to serve an ale! What reason could she have to help dwarves? I have _no_ trust in her kind!"

" _Ai_!" Meri cried, now also starting to lose her calm, "No need to get personal here! I'm far from a child-!" she huffed out, crossing her arms in front of her.

Gandalf continued talking to Thorin, not even hearing the girl. "She has a reason, and a very fine one indeed! If you do not hold trust in her, then trust in _me_! Her talents shall bring you a great benefit on your way!"

"Seriously! Do you two even listen-!" Meri hopelessly tried but was cut off, again.

"I am beginning to reconsider my trust in you Gandalf," Thorin said darkly, "Your way of taking care of matters is highly questionable! You have been doing nothing but hiding precious information from me, operating matters with a mischievous mind and choosing incompetent individuals to join _my_ company! I care not whether she's talented or not, she holds no importance in this case!"

"Well, _bugger_. This is getting ridiculous. Should I get offended? I mean-," Meri stopped talking when sensing something wrong.

The air around them grew heavy.

The few candles around them wavered, their lights dimming.

Noises in the background faded.

And Gandalf.

Gandalf looked very much pissed.

" **She-!"** the wizards hissed, not too loud for the whole bar to hear but twice as effective, **"-has seen your quest's outcome beforehand, Thorin Oakenshield! Do you dare to defy my wish to take her along?!** "

After Gandalf's sudden wizard-like powerful boom, a heavy silence fell above the trio. Meri blinked in surprise and looked at the wizard like he had finally gone mad. _'Well. That escalated quite quickly, if I may just say. I think the cat is out of the bag now. Hopefully anyone else didn't hear that or we're all pretty much screwed.''_

Thorin turned to Meri with unbelieving eyes, leaving a fuming Gandalf to glare at his profile. Meri smiled weakly and sent an awkward wave to the dwarf. At least she finally got his attention now.

"Yo."

" _A seer_?" Thorin muttered cautiously and slowly let his gaze wander from her head to her toes with a calculating look in his eyes.

' _Oh, nothing beats a good old intense and very awkward once over.'_ "Ah, well, I'm afraid that's slightly exaggerated. I only know of few things related to your quest. I've seen them in my dreams." _'And yeeears back, could say another lifetime ago, in the movies._ _'_ "And I've seen _you_ in my dreams." _'No-,_ _ **wait**_ _! God, that came out wrong!'_

The frown on Thorin's face was so deep his eyebrows almost met each other. For good ten seconds he looked at Meri with these mistrustful eyes before he turned to Gandalf to confirm this claim. "Is this true Gandalf? Has this-, this _child_ truly seen what the future beholds?"

Gandalf, having calmed himself down again, nodded at him with seriousness in his wise eyes. He let his gaze wander through the bar, searching for any unnecessary pairs of ears that could have been listening and was satisfied when finding none. "That she has."

"Ridiculous. What you're trying to claim is-, Gandalf it's impossible!"

"No," Gandalf shook his head, "It's an enormous gamble, yes, foolish even, and inhuman in many ways. But perfectly possible. Our Meri here has been given a huge burden to carry on her little shoulders, and if it is a gift or a curse, we have yet to find out."

Meri frowned slightly. _'Yes, I'm the real victim here.'_

"And just _what_ have you seen, Dreamer?" Thorin whispered carefully, facing Meri again.

Meri shut her mouth tightly and glanced uncertainly at Gandalf, going over all the matters they had gone through just half an hour ago. She was given a cautious nod from the older man and so with a shaky sigh Meri looked straight into the piercing blue eyes of Thorin, still marveling over their beauty, and spoke.

"I've seen... much. I _know_ much. Things from the past, and from the future. Odd glimpses from here and there, if you may. Strange events with strange people and with no further explanations. It's mostly been very confusing. Making only little sense afterwards when not knowing any details or backstories, or even the exact time frame of all the happenings. But there's one thing… One thing I know for sure, is that they all started in one place… and will end in the exactly same place," Meri licked her lips,

"In Erebor."

Thorin's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"What know you of Erebor?" he muttered darkly, taking threatening steps towards the surprised girl.

" _I know much_ , King under the Mountain," Meri repeated quietly without a beat, too nervous to do anything else.

Thorin's glare intensified after hearing the title, but Meri just took a calming breath and kept her sincere eyes on Thorin's thunderous ones.

"Listen, you have great mistrust for strangers, even greater for those of another race, that I know and seriously don't expect anything else," _'After all you've been through, that is…'_ "But what you must understand is, that I'm here only because these bloody dreams _won't leave me alone_. They taunt me almost every night, and make me worry for these short, hairy people I've never even met in real life."

At this, she glanced at the table full of dwarves, missing the amusement dancing in Gandalf's eyes, "They make me concerned over a bunch of complete strangers... You can't possibly understand how frustrated I've been over this for the last _two years._ It's been-, it's been madness," she ran a trembling hand through her braided hair, "But, I've come to understand they have all along prepared me and showed me what I was destined to do. My purpose, the very reason why I exist… is to be _here_. To help you. And to guide you."

Meri paused for a while, searching for the right words to say. _'Probably should've written down some sort of speech or something. Would've made this much easier.'_

"Erebor is all I've thought of ever since the dreams started. _And it's all I know anymore_ ," the girl swallowed a lump in her throat, her eyes getting annoyingly wet again. "Do you _not_ want all the help you can get with reclaiming your home back?"

Thorin's hard eyes examined her closely while she was talking. He felt unsure of her even after hearing her reasoning and this doubt inside him automatically pushed him into not liking her. A seer or not, she was a child of men and had no place in dwarven matters, no place at all. _'Gandalf insists she is essential.'_ Thorin turned to the wizard's side giving him a dark look. _'The Lonely Mountain will be lost because of this cursed wizard!'_

"I will not have her slow us down, Gandalf, a seer or not," Thorin growled quietly to him, still refusing to accept this turn of events.

Gandalf merely gave him one pointed look. "Would you rather turn your back to someone who has, dare I say, some rather critical knowledge of _your_ future?" he asked, and after a passing thought added: "Why, you do realize what could be done with her information, should it be passed on… to wrong hands?"

A new kind of realization sunk into the head of the King dwarf. Mahal only knew just what else the girl knew. Dread began to fill his stomach just to think what could happen if someone with evil intentions should reach any piece of this knowledge about his dear quest. There would be someone to try and stop him – _there always was someone_. And unlike he would have wanted, he didn't have an army with him to stand by and fight for his home. Right now he only had a handful of loyal dwarves by his side who were already risking their lives for this quest.

There was no other way. He couldn't afford to get rid of the girl. Seer or not, she already knew too much.

Thorin cleared his throat before speaking to Gandalf, not even bothering to lower his voice so that the girl wouldn't hear him. "You planned this all along, Gandalf, you knew of her and didn't tell me. You _chose_ not to tell me. Why? She is a threat, do yo understand? A threat to this quest. She could have destroyed everything we have planned - and who is to say she already hasn't? How can we tell whether she is being honest with us, that she wishes to aid us? What if she has already revealed all she knows to another Master? Tell me Gandalf, how can I place any of my trust on her, when it seems that I cannot even trust in you? You tricked me into this!"

With that, Thorin swallowed some of his bitterness and cleared his throat. "This Dreamer-," he spat out the name like it had a bad taste on it, "-will be _your_ responsibility, as will her death fall into _your_ hands. This decision is yours alone, and I will not take any part of the disgrace that her involvement brings."

"Done and done!" Meri cried out hurriedly, her heart beating painfully fast in excitement. There was no need to prolong this god-awful situation any further. "Now, where do I sign?!"

Thorin's shoulders stiffed at her exclamation while Gandalf looked at the girl with his eyebrows high on his forehead. She had stolen his turn to speak.

"Just a second there, Thorin," the older man spoke and stopped Thorin from turning back to his company, "There's one more thing..."

"What. Is it?" the dwarf hissed lowly, already sick and tired of playing along with his games.

Gandalf stroked his beard thoughtfully before giving an answer.

"Ah. Well. You see. There might be another person involved. A man, so to speak."

Meri held her breath while seeing Thorin closing his eyes tightly _._ She sent a quick prayer. _'Good God, give strength to this dwarf to deal with our bullshit. He's on the edge right now and in desperate need of some holy spirit to carry him through this all. That is all I ask, some peace of mind for this poor suffering creature. Don't let him explode. Not yet. For I think I can see a vein pulsing on his forehead and I know there's still more to come.'_

" _ **Another one**_?" Thorin asked in a voice that was ready to commit a murder, " _Another_ seer? By Mahal! Just where have you picked up these freak of natures? And why would I even have the need for another if I already have one?" ' _Durin, how many creatures knows of my plans?!'_

Gandalf cleared his throat, trying to keep his own temper in check. "Yes, the man dreams also. Which means that he knows of the situation just as much as Miss Meri here. This should serve as a reason enough to take him along and make sure that all the secrets regarding your quest are safe and close to yourself. Also, these two travel together, have traveled for a long time now and will not be separated because of this journey."

"It's true Master Oakenshield," Meri butted in with a small, apologizing voice, "We two come as a pair. There's no other way."

Thorin kept his eyes closed and tried to keep his composure as calm as possible. Things were certainly not going the way he intended and he felt a hot wave of anger pulsing through his veins, building up in his head and creating the early symptoms of a major headache. He often had those when being in deep distress, and he just knew the rest of his night was doomed from any form of rest. _'Not only do I have a poor burglar, but now also_ _ **two**_ _suspicious man-_ _children in my company. This cannot be a good omen for the quest.'_

"Of course you do," the dwarf muttered sarcastically under his breath, "And just _where_ might this male companion of yours be right now? Why is he not here to speak for his own behalf?"

Meri shut her mouth tightly, seeing just what kind of trouble she was causing for Thorin and it was making her feel like a total failure in front of the dwarf King. With a nervous glance at Gandalf, she silently passed the question for him for she couldn't bear to be the one giving Thorin any more bad news. After all, how was she supposed to tell Thorin that the human man he was asking for had a dick as his brains?

Gandalf cleared his throat and drummed against his staff in a thoughtful way. "It seems that our young Mister Aleksi has been momentarily… distracted, by other means, so to speak. However, I have the strongest believe that he'll join us any moment now, for he too knows the importance of this quest."

Meri felt like rolling her eyes so she simply just closed them and remained silent with the whole thing. ' _Some bloody distraction that'll prove to be.'_

Thorin was even less impressed than the girl and it showed on his face. The dwarf felt the greatest need to strangle something but instead he sighed through his nose and eyed Meri with a deep distaste.

"I don't care to discuss these matters twice in the same night," he said, his voice holding a certain irritated edge, "One hour. We'll wait for your companion for one hour and if he doesn't turn up, I'll have no interest in speaking to him at all. We'll go through this with you and with my company, and you will answer the questions asked and then later inform the man just what he's missed. Is this understood?"

Meri fiercely nodded her head, feeling ridiculously like a little child being told what to do by her parents. It didn't help that Gandalf hummed in humor right next to her.

With that out of the way, Thorin let his eyes wander from Meri's face to her body, once more taking in her small size and her choice of baggy men's clothing as if they were personally assaulting him in some way. Unbelieving what he was seeing, he chose to close his eyes and shake his head _. 'Has Gandalf even realized how young and…_ _ **little**_ _she is? This man-child barely stand taller than my dwarves!'_ The early signs of headache were turning into a steady, unpleasant thudding in the front of his head. His dwarf-instincts were screaming that females were not supposed to go on such dangerous quests. Females were looked after of, cherished and protected! _'She's not built for this journey. She won't make it. This Dreamer will die.'_ No matter how Thorin despised other races and no matter how he wanted nothing to do with anyone else that was not a dwarf, he still felt a painful sting of wrongness in his heart when looking at the little girl in front of him, knowing he was sentencing her to her death when allowing her to come with him. Yet another thing to add to the already huge burden on his shoulders.

"Tell me-," Thorin grunted through his teeth, hoping for at least some sort of a light in this hopeless situation "-that this isn't your first time on the road. Say that you're familiar with travelling, that you have more experience than what your appearances leads on. At least, tell me that you know _something_ about defending yourself."

Meri was quick to grant him an answer, so keen on lessening his distress in any sort of way to pay attention to the sexist insult he was giving her. "Yes!" she spluttered out and inwardly half-fived with herself when seeing the relieved flicker in Thorin's eyes, "Yes! Yes, on everyday basis. I'm no stranger to hard work; I've known the ways of traveling and how to defend myself for quite some time now. Master Oakenshield, I know I might not look like much, but I'll try my _hardest_ not to be an extra weight to the company. That's… really not the reason why I'm coming along. You'll understand in time. I'll prove myself, I will!"

Thorin looked grim, like he didn't fully believe what she was saying. She sounded like she was trying too hard to make him believe her, to make him trust her, and that was what made him only more wary. Strangers were not this friendly with him without a reason. Strangers-, he grimaced, -did not just try to gain his favor _for nothing_.

"We shall see about that…" he muttered sourly, "Shan't we now? For it seems like I've been given no other choice in the first place."

Thorin gave one murderous glance to Gandalf and then, like an offended child, he turned his back to them and marched off with quick, angered steps. No doubt the company would know of the newest twist of events in a matter of minutes.

Meri sighed and turned to Gandalf who seemed to be fighting off a traitorous smirk.

"Well. That… was delightful," the wizard commented, once again stroking his beard while watching the distancing back of the dwarf King.

Meri gave him a pointed look, immediately feeling much more relaxed when Thorin was gone. " _You think_? For a while I was actually quite afraid he might go all Hulk on our asses…! Stars, talk about being paranoid! Did you _see_ the way he looked at me? Did you? Like I was some-, some vain, good for nothing, common _town wench_! Gandalf, he's even worse than what I expected, just how are we supposed to get along if he can barely even stand the sight of me? Gosh, just-, do you even _want_ to know what my mama would've done to him if she'd seen the way he looked at me?! I mean, men like him inspire that woman's inner serial killer!" she exclaimed and threw her hands up to dramatize her statement.

Then, after a moment, she nervously added, "Seriously though, do you think he'll ever learn to like me and Aleksi?"

Gandalf, quite humored with her rambling, put his hand on her shoulder in a comforting way. "Worry not dear child. Thorin might be a little challenging as a new acquaintance, even for a dwarf, yet in time I believe he will grow-, hem… How should I word it... More _approachable_. Even to such as you and Aleksi."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"Men? In our quest? Unheard of!"

"Did ye say a _seer_?! Seein' Erebor in her dreams?! Durin's balls! She's a spy! An assassin!"

" _Aaaaaye_ , 'n what a lovely little assassin she'd make too! Just look at her lads, look at that fair healthy hair!"

"Never mind _her_ , what about the _man_? He's more like to try to kill us all."

"I'd just like to press that I don't approve any of this. Bringing gentle folk into wildlife… We'll have female blood on our hands soon."

"And she's rather small for her kind, don't you think? Wonder if she can she even lift an axe?"

"Doubt it. The lass is naught but skin and bones, not going to last long on the road. The faintest breeze of wind will carry her away at first given chance. Mahal knows what'll happen if an actual storm surprises us…! We'll have to rope her to one of the ponies just in case."

"Would you stop gossiping about her already? She's looking right at us."

"Ha. If she's a seer, then I'm an orc."

"Ye _are_ as ugly as one…"

"No, no, no, why are we allowing this to happen-? _Ori stop looking at the girl_."

"But how _young_ she looks…! Say, are we sacrificing baby girls in the wilderness now?"

"Have you even considered how _inappropriate_ it is to have one female among a company of thirteen male dwarves?"

"Oh dear. Oh dear. This is very wrong indeed. Very wrong."

"Aye, well, I'mma take me baths as naked as a baby dwarfling 'n the lass just has to adapt. Might as well fall in love with me."

"Just shut up already! Shut up! Each and one of you!" Nori boomed while banging his fist to the table and earning silence along with irritated looks from his companions. Even Thorin looked at him with raised eyebrows. "The lass is coming, we like it or not! The Tharkûn made it clear that he wants these men on the road with us and I wouldn't go against a wizard's will! Now stop nagging about this already, you're all giving me a Mahal damned headache!"

Bad looks and some annoyed grumbles were sent to his way but otherwise the dwarves smothered their whining.

That was before Fili mused out a "I _do_ think she's pretty, though", making the company, with the exception of his snickering little brother, groan loudly at him. "What? I'm just saying! For all we know, she could be half dwarrowdam with her height!"

"You are mistaken there, young Master Fíli," Gandalf's sudden voice spooked the gossiping group of dwarves. Most of them jumped slightly on their seats as if they had been caught doing something wrong.

The wizard brought the girl for introductions and everyone went to shamelessly stare at the short blond girl, even Bilbo. The girl answered their intense gazes with an equally shameless staring of her own. This back and forth ogling went on for the next awkward ten seconds before Gandalf decided to take the matters into his hands.

"Judging by your rather loud chitchat, all of you must now know of Miss Meri Karhu then. My dear girl, here you can finally see the company of Thorin Oakenshield."

Meri blinked and cleared her throat before dipping down into a deep curtsy, feeling fourteen pairs of eyes on her. _'Talk about stepping into the spotlight.'_ "At your service, gentlemen. I've been looking forward for quite some time to meet you all, as Master Oakenshield must have shared with you already. I'll be joining you in this quest for now on and so will my partner. That is… if he'd first grant us his presence, of course." _'That damn fool of a man. I'll be making sure he wakes_ _up tomorrow morning with no balls attached to his miserable being.'_

Some of the dwarves gave her hesitant nods while the rest looked at her with unimpressed eyes. No one said a word, just continued gazing and making the girl more than aware of the uncomfortable air around them. For the second time that evening, she nervously shifted on her feet beside Gandalf and wished for someone to say something. It was clear that no one knew how to act in such a situation. Though, Thorin sure looked like he was enjoying all the discomfort his dwarves brought to the girl.

The silence was growing unbearable and Meri felt an awkward cold drop of sweat rolling down her neck.

"Aye... You sure are no dwarf," Fili - praise his pure precious soul - finally voiced out what everyone in the table was thinking.

Meri blinked again and focused her eyes solely on him, making the youngster slightly flush at the same. Whether it was because of his obvious statement or her intense gaze on his person, Meri found the sight of his ears turning to red absolutely darling, especially when they were big - as was common for dwarves - and the blush was so easily noticeable under his fair hair. In a way the girl was sorry for making him feel embarrassed by her ogling but she simply just found it much easier to take them all in one by one rather than trying to get a grasp of the whole picture in front of her.

Fili was a charming looking, late-teen dwarf. Young, reckless and handsome. And though already knocking at the doors of adulthood, he still had a childish spark of mischief in his appearances. He was the only blonde of the group and boy, was his long golden locks looking pretty and well-taken care of. Not a single tangle in them. Yet even more beautiful were his eyes, those bright pale blue orbs that shone brightly and with that child-like innocence. It was obvious that he hadn't yet seen his first true battlefield, for his eyes weren't dimmed in that sense, as were the case of his uncle's. Same Durin eyes with the same pale blue color, only Fili's were much, much brighter even in the current dark lighting.

Meri gave an easy smile to the blushing teenager.

"I sure am no dwarf," the girl stated in good humor, "I'm glad we've got that sorted out for once and for all."

Fili smiled sheepishly and the red in his ears got deeper. Beside him, his brother snickered quietly at his reaction and bumped their shoulders together hard, starting a hushed bickering between the two.

Gandalf hummed and set his hand onto Meri's shoulder as a kind gesture. "You needn't feel so wary of her, Master Dwarves," he said to the company, "Meri is a perfectly trustworthy friend to have, something you will come to realize sooner or later, I am sure. I have no doubt she only has the best interest of the company in her mind."

"But Gandalf, tell us, is it true what Thorin says?" Balin spoke out from next to Thorin, turning his eyes to the grey wizard, a curious glint in them, "A seer? Truly?"

Meri looked from Fili to Balin, feeling her eyes rest with the sight of him. With hair and beard already pure white from his respectable age - and strangely free of any sort of dwarvish braids - Balin was definitely one of the oldest dwarves in the company. There was something warm and grandfatherly in the dwarf and not only because of his striking outer resemblance to Saint Nicholas, but also because of the soft, almost understanding look in his warm brown eyes. Meri could easily picture him being the one to give others support and comfort when in need. At that she felt a sudden bang of homesickness and longing to see her own late papa. Though, to be honest, Balin seemed to be much kinder soul than the meddling mischievous old man from her childhood that always got her talked into his ridiculous childish tricks. Tricks that always ended up with her alone facing the consequences with her pissed off mama. _'For an old fart with a walking stick, that man was suspiciously quick to vanish from the spot when things started going down…'_ No, Balin seemed much too courteous to be compared with her late papa.

Meri turned to eye at Gandalf beside her with a slightly judging look on her face. _'_ _ **You**_ _, however…'_

Gandalf nodded at Balin and his grip slightly tightened on Meri's shoulder. "We must choose our words carefully, Master Balin, should we wish to stay unseen. These are delicate matters we are speaking of and there are… _ears_ everywhere."

Meri quirked an accusing brow at him. _'Really? Does that rule not apply on wizards and their wizardly power-booms in the middle of public boozers then?'_ She spotted a slight side-smirk from the tall man and she had no doubt he knew what she was thinking.

"I can imagine," Balin agreed with Gandalf and eyed Meri again, "All sort of things you must know of, Miss _Kaar-hu_ … All sort of things, indeed…" he mused out mostly to himself, before he blinked and realized he hadn't even given her his name yet, "Ah! By my beard, how rude of me not to introduce myself. Apologies, lassie. I am Balin, son of Fundin. At your service."

Meri felt like sighing in relief, not even caring about the way her last name was getting butchered for the second time that night, not when she finally got some positive signs from one of the dwarves. Maybe the night was not doomed to fail after all.

"It's truly a pleasure, Master Balin. Please, just Meri is perfectly fine." _'And that's because you people are shit at pronouncing my surname, kind sirs.'_

"Well then," Gandalf cleared his throat, "Now that we have this sorted out, why don't you take a seat dear girl, while we wait for the last piece of our puzzle to arrive?" he smiled thinly and gestured towards the table.

Meri listened his advice, ignored the burning stares of some of the dwarves and picked herself a chair in between Bilbo and Nori while Gandalf went to sit next to Thorin.

The hobbit looked slightly bewildered from having the human girl sit beside him and he nervously twiddled with the buttons on his vest. The presence of the girl itself was not what made Bilbo stunned but more of the company's attitude towards her. Everyone seemed to act slightly too suspicious and Bilbo couldn't tell why. Surely a girl of her age and size, added with the well-mannered way she spoke, wasn't any real danger to any of them. Bilbo didn't think so. He was just surprised and a little intrigued. The girl spoke in an odd rough-edged accent and it perked up the hobbit's natural (un-hobbit like) curiosity.

"Ah, well, why hello there dear," the Halfling spluttered out once he had somewhat collected himself, "Pardon me for being so straight, but I couldn't help but to notice the accent," he tested the waters, though doing it very awkwardly and with an oddly uncharacteristic bluntness, "I believe I have never heard such before. Where is it that you hail from Miss Karhu? The South?"

Meri had barely time to take a calming breath before the small hobbit next to her spoke to her, making her turn to his side. She focused her blue eyes on him and scanned his features closely, making him a little flustered. _'Gosh. What an overly adorable little creature. Just look at those little curls and button nose! And he actually got my name right, good for him!'_

Bilbo certainly stuck out like a sore thumb from the rest of the company. Chubby and even shorter than the dwarves, he was shorter than Meri too with the tip of his head barely reaching her shoulders, and the girl found this amusing as she was used to men towering her short frame like skyscrapers. Bilbo could have easily passed as a child if it weren't for his big hairy hobbit-feet and a face of a mature person. He had kind features compared to the dwarves - soft and chubby and with a healthy rosy color on his cheeks. It was obvious that the hobbit had lived a peaceful, easy-going lifestyle, with full meals on the table every day, a warm and cozy bed to sleep on every night, and a safe home to return to. It was almost enviable how innocent and unaffected he still was of the nasty world that began just outside the borders of Shire. Shadows hadn't yet had their chance to taint his pure being. _'But how long would this last…?'_

Meri blinked and came back to the current matter. Bilbo's question was a tricky one and she had to think a while what to say to him. _'I kinda hoped this conversation could've taken place much, much later.'_

"Ah, you see," she began slowly, giving him an apologetic smile, "Westron isn't really my native language, as you can tell. Nor is any of the languages here that you might know of. I come from very far Master Baggins… My home is-, it's so far away I fear it's not possible for me to return there ever again. So far, I cannot show you the lands from any map that you may have. Or from _any map_ you might know of, to say the truth. It's really no wonder you find my accent a bit strange. Actually, I'd find it very much surprising if you'd ever heard of it before."

Bilbo took in the explanation with a slight look of bewilderment on his face. Never had he heard of any unreachable lands, not other than the Undying Lands, and surely that couldn't be the case of this. But, above all, he was startled when hearing her using his name, which he was _sure_ he hadn't given her yet. _On the second though!_ he was more horrified of himself for not introducing himself to her in the first place, as was more than polite to do when first meeting someone. Had any hobbits been near to witness this shameful moment of his, he'd never hear the end of it. "Pardon me Miss, you seem to know my name already. How can that be?"

Meri just shook her head with a secretive smile and gave him a little wink, to which the hobbit blushed to and sank deeper on his seat.

Dori was not convinced with the information she had given them and he quite rudely barked into the conversation. " _Unknown lands_? Now see, that there doesn't sound too promising to me," he spoke out suspiciously. "What are you doing here then? Surely a _stranger_ from a _strange_ faraway land must have a _strange_ purpose here, other than to cause distrust in a _strange_ group of dwarves?"

Grunts of agreement were heard from the other dwarves.

Meri would have loved to stick her tongue to the oldest Ri-brother, but decided to play it cool and be patient with him. _'God knows, this is a_ _ **strange**_ _situation for all of us.'_

Her blue eyes took in the face of the silver-haired dwarf with fancy neat braids sticking tightly against his scalp. He had sharp, masculine features and a strong looking body under his clothes, all these making it easy to intimidate his enemies. However, when Meri got over the first layer of harshness and distance, she locked her gaze with his, and found a pair of sweet caramel eyes that held the look of a– _'Oh my…_ ' -they held that exact look and softness of a loving mother. _'Or a very devoted big brother…'_ Dori was the eldest of the three Ri-brothers and he certainly had the air of "man of the house" around him, and the way he kept his youngest sibling glued to his side only strengthened that image. Meri could easily detect the protective streak that he had.

Drumming her fingers on the worn table, Meri thought what to answer him. She didn't want to lie, knowing that over time she would only get caught and possibly get accused for trying to horribly deceive them. But she couldn't just go ahead and tell them the whole nasty truth either, clearly remembering the words of warning from Gandalf earlier that evening. _'Still. If I ever seek for their trust, I got to be truthful. In a subtle way.'_ Meri took a notice of Thorin watching her with a dark look and she quickly licked her suddenly gone-dry lips before answering.

"I seriously don't have a clue of why _I'm_ here. I wish I had the knowledge of every decision made by the higher party, but sadly, I got no idea of their true reasons, Master Dori." Hearing his own name, Dori's eyes widened and he looked around to the other dwarves to share his shock. "All I know, is that _something…_ happened to me and my partner, something quite insane, which then lead us to our purpose in here. We've discussed this with Gandalf and decided together, that it's the best for us to just accept this without causing any unnecessary commotion, and play our parts as the Valar intended us to do."

Gandalf nodded to this, coming to her aid. "Your newest recruits are in a quite unusual situation indeed. But as it happens, their misfortune shall come to be your blessing, Master Dwarves," he gave a small sad smile to Meri, "After all, you are not the only beings in Middle Earth who are far away from home."

That brought a slight guilty flicker in Dori's eyes, and the silver braided dwarf hesitated to pursue the subject any further. After all, the pain of losing home was something he knew very well of.

Gloin was the next one to speak. "Very well then. The lass seems to be harmless enough, for now," he claimed, but still eyed Meri with caution, "But, what of the man? Where is he? There are details to discuss and facts to get straight, so why isn't he here?"

Meri turned to look at the dwarf and noticed him immediately straightening up on his seat when he saw her looking. He answered her studying gaze with a challenging stare of his own, as if daring her to inspect his very being the same manner she had done to the others before him. Gloin was a warrior, that much could be told by only looking at him and reading his body language. He was trained by mind and body to face challenges and right at that moment, his hard eyes looked at Meri like she was a new opponent for him. Or more like just another new bug to be crushed under his foot. The girl didn't let his hostile reaction bother her, her examining eyes automatically sliding over to his hair. Fiery red and voluminous as lion's mane, Gloin's hair was probably the ideal hair in dwarvish culture. Something to truly gloss over and be envied by, but Meri though it to be slightly a bit too… much with muchness. Then again, the dwarf looked like he was very proud of his uncontrollable mane so who was she to tell him he was clearly over-doing it? Moving on from his hair to his beard (really, there was no telling where one started and the other one ended when the whole dwarf seemed to be covered in the same voluptuous red hair) the girl found it fancily decorated with different beads, making her curious of the reason of them all. Gloin was the perfect image of a dwarf from all the fairytales, from head to toe, more than anyone else sitting in the table with him.

Getting back to the situation in hand, Meri recalled Gloin's question and suddenly felt like face palming herself. This was the third time today someone asked where Aleksi was, and that did _not_ include her own constant questioning of the same matter. Just what could she possibly answer to the dwarf? _'Well, Gloin, my dear dwarf, Aleksi is currently busy chasing skirts it seems. He might come, or not, depends really if he gets lucky enough with his efforts.'_ Maybe crying was more suited considering her situation. _'That bloody, useless little-.'_

"Oh, but. Worry not, Master Glóin," Gandalf was the one to answer the dwarf with a knowing glint in his eyes and turned to look at the main entrance in one (overly)dramatic motion, "I have a small hunch that he'll be joining us any moment now. Any, moment, now…"

Meri cocked up her eyebrows at the wizard's words. Knowing that Gandalf was not one to bullshit around, she turned to look at the door with an expecting expression. The company behind her did the same. And, as always, Gandalf's wizardly knowledge didn't let anyone down and the old man knew perfectly well what he was talking about.

Not even a second later the main door opened with a big bang, making people send curious glances towards it. A familiar fair-haired human man - at this very moment, Bofur in the background let out an unbelieving gasp when realizing who he was - rushed into the room wearing a distressed look on his face. He took couple of hasted steps inside while searching all over the bar in an anxious manner. Once his gaze settled onto Meri, he stopped right onto his tracks, looking like he had been caught doing something terribly wrong. His wide brown eyes bounced from Meri to Gandalf, to Meri, to the dwarves behind her, to Meri, to the dwarves again, and finally back to Meri. The man gulped noticeably, his Adam's apple plopping up and down.

" _Oh shit_ ," he whispered out from his place near the doorway, and ran his hand through his blond hair, "Oh _arse_ ," he breathed out and moved his hand to scratch his neck. "Meri-bear!" he tried to smile at the girl, but could only manage a small shy quirk of lips when seeing the girl's impassive look.

The man walked with quick long strides all the way up to them, his eyes getting a certain light in them when looking at the tall wizard at the table. "And _Gandalf the Grey_! My man! How long it's been? It's good to see-!"

" **It's good to see YOU,** " Meri cut him off, clenching her jaw and giving the approaching man a disappointed look all while standing up from her seat on turning her back to the dwarves, "And what a good thing too that you were _here_ with your _sharp_ _eyes_ to make a note of the _company's arrival_ …! And coming straight to get me...! Would've _completely_ missed them otherwise…! What a good thing, indeed…!" she hissed to him quietly but angrily, not really wanting the table full of dwarves behind her to hear her.

The man gave her a guilty pout and rubbed the back of his head in a goofy way. "Ah hah hah. Now, calm down Baby Bear, you're starting to scare me a little… _You see_ , there was this-," he tried to explain but quickly quit his pathetic try of an excuse when Meri gave him a quick flicker of her hand to hush him out, one that greatly amused Gandalf who watched the exchange with raised brows.

"There, _always,_ is," the girl growled out, before taking a deep inhale and forcing a calm look on her face. With one final pointed look to the man, she turned to speak to the company again, "I really must apologize my partner's horrible manners. He's truly bad at being on time at the places he's most needed in…" she sighed at them like a mother of a disobedient child would, which was funny because she was clearly much younger than the man.

Meri glanced at Aleksi and continued her motherly role by saying: "Now, why don't you start making up your rude absence by introducing yourself to the company?"

She did a quick pointed nod towards the table full of dwarves, and Aleksi was brought into the reality of their current situation.

"Well, arse," he blinked at the sight, "Aleksi Ek, at your service!" He rushed a quick bow to the company before giving each and one of the members a long, calculating look, succeeding making the dwarves quite uncomfortable under his heavy gaze.

Gandalf and Meri were long forgotten from Aleksi's world as the man greedily eyed the sight of dwarves in front of him like a kid in a candy shop. It was kind of scary in a way, and the dwarves surely didn't appreciate his burning gaze on them. His stare lingered on Fili and Kili, and something unrecognizable passed through his eyes, before he blinked, and turned to look at the leader of the company. Brown eyes suddenly glinted with appreciation and excitement. _'Holy shit. Dude. It's actually taking place, right now. I'm in front of Thorin-fucking-Oakenshield and his kin, and the actual goddamned_ _ **company**_ _! I can't even-. Holy shit. I got to remember to breath. Going to pass out otherwise. Two long fucking years, man. You have no idea. Thorin, dude, you seriously got no fucking clue. We've been getting ready for you for_ _ **two years**_ _. For this. I can't believe it. We're finally here. We're going to take over Erebor. This is-. Jesus. I need a drink.'_

"Thorin Oakenshield," Aleksi rasped out with a dry throat and let his eyes take in the sight of the future King under the Mountain, who was currently staring at him with a dark look on his face. _'Keep the glare, man. I'm only here to make sure you're staying strong and alive and healthy and sane. Alive and sane, sane and alive. Those are the key words for this quest.'_

"Isn't this a longed-for meeting!" he continued with a sudden roguish grin, looking at the dwarf like he had just seen one of his best pals again, "It's about a time you marched back in to that mountain of yours! Believe it, me and Meri have already been waiting for _years_ for someone to take some action over the matter. _Years,_ man! And let me tell you now, for a man who has absolutely no patience at all to begin with, that's _a_ _pretty damn long time to wait_ , especially for a mortal man. You know, I don't really have any extra years in my pockets to wait around for you to be chilling and doing nothing. Any much longer and I might've dragged you there by myself, with only the three of us taking over the Mountain," he rambled light-heartily, still not being able to take his eyes off from the said dwarf.

Meri gave the man one long unbelieving look, her eyes growing wider and wider with each word Aleksi let out from his careless mouth. Before he had even finished with his talking, the girl had already fully covered her face with her hands in mortification. ' _Jesus. Christ. Why did I let this man speak?'_ She massaged her face. _'Thank lord mighty high above that Gandalf already gave away our secret or things would've taken one rather nasty turn here. Talk about being suspicious, who the hell speaks like that to a complete stranger!'_ She peeked through her fingers and glared at her fellow human. _'And would you stop eye-raping the dwarves already, you big idiot!'_

Gandalf's eyes sparkled with amusement but Aleksi's speech didn't seem to give a great impression to the dwarves. Majority of them looked at him with dark eyes.

" _For two years_ …?" Balin whispered to Thorin, who only shrugged back to him as an answer.

"Hold yer tongue and show some respect to your superiors, _boy_ …!" Dwalin growled at the same time, banging his fist on the table and making ale splash around from the pints, "This's no commoner yer speakin' to! The dwarf ye're currently facin' is one of the royal sons of Durin, the rightful ruler of Erebor - and the next _King_ Under the Mountain…!" he hissed angrily and stared Aleksi with his infamous hard look on his face, making Aleksi suddenly regret his own straightforwardness.

Meri took an unintentional step back from the table while watching the big dwarf seethe at Aleksi. If she previously though Gloin looked hostile enough towards her, it was nothing compared to Dwalin's ruthless behavior that downright slashed out to attack the human man. Now, if Gloin was a warrior to the core, Dwalin, on the other hand, was an unpredictable wild beast, one that was ready to protect his territory anytime at any cost. The dwarf was… _huge,_ and _not_ in the fat kind of way _._ Comparing to the others, he was easily the tallest of the bunch, even outgrowing the Durin royals, and had the widest, most muscled shoulders Meri had ever seen on a person his size. Like Thorin, Dwalin too had grim features and no signs of gentle traits on him, looking very much unlike his kind his older brother Balin. But just like Balin, Dwalin too didn't bore any braids on his dark hair or beard, though he _did_ have few beads struck (rather painful-looking too) through his ears. But that wasn't the most curious thing about the dwarf, it was the fact that the crown of his head was, actually, very much _bald_. Which was an eye-catching twist in itself, but, the hairless area was also covered in strange tattoos, making Meri seriously think that maybe the dwarf had purposely shaved off his hair for a reason or another. Though, before the girl had the time to really start thinking about it all, she forced her eyes off the fierce looking dwarf, afraid that he would caught her staring.

Thorin leaned forward at the table and did a quick look around the dim tavern, searching once more for any unwanted audience before exchanging some silent words in Khuzdul with Dwalin. After that he turned to gaze at the still standing human man, giving him an unimpressed once over.

"Quite the… individuals you've found me Gandalf," the leader commented, flashing another unamused look to the wizard next to him, "From the manners of this one, I can only imagine you've picked him up straight from the streets. And you want me to welcome him to my trusted company, just like that?" he asked slowly and closed tightly his eyes, trying to keep his cool.

Gandalf stroked his beard while looking at Aleksi with twinkling eyes. He turned to Thorin and smiled.

"Why, yes. Yes, I do."

Thorin shook his head at the answer and focused his eyes on Aleksi's person again. He could spot the same unfamiliar, rough accent from the man's tongue, making it clear that he and the girl hailed from the same place, though where, Thorin did not know and it was making him feel uneasy. Odd names, odd appearances, odd accents, odd manners… And the petite girl was wearing _men's_ clothing, for Durin's sake…! If either one would suddenly grow out a second head, the dwarf wasn't sure if he would be surprised to see that. This human man happened to give him odd vibes too, that is, even _more_ odd than the girl, making Thorin suspect that there was something else wrong with him than just the clear cultural differences.

"I'll be completely honest now, for I see no point in politeness here," Thorin spoke to Aleksi, eyeing him with deep resentment, "I do not _want_ , nor do I _ask_ for your services, Mister _Ekk-_ ," the dwarf King grimaced at the odd surname, "-and if it were up to me, I absolutely wouldn't let you join us in this quest, no matter what your female companion may claim to have seen in her dreams. Nevertheless, I find myself in tough situation because according to Gandalf, I apparently _need_ you on this journey. And although I do not agree with his reasons, I'd be a fool to deny a wizard's demand." The wizard earned nasty looks from the other dwarves. "I'm told you too have this gift of… _foreseeing_ ," Thorin brought out with a skeptic tone, holding in the need to pinch the bridge of his nose, "Are the dreams you see the same as the girl's? Have you seen Erebor as well?"

As soon as Erebor was mentioned, the dwarves grew uncharacteristically silent around the table, a hungry curiosity burning in their eyes as they watched the humans and waited desperately for answers. Even Bilbo seemed to be more than anxious to hear the news.

Aleksi took a deep breath when listening to Thorin's voice in the air. He felt like a silly little school girl standing in front of her life-long crush - _not_ that he had any experience of being a school girl - but couldn't care less about that, even though he felt the odd looks some of the dwarves were giving him because of his shameless ogling. _'Dudes, relax. No homo. I'm not going to molest the dwarf or anything. It's just some healthy, manly admiration. Nothing gay.'_ He had to remember his manners when giving Thorin an answer or Meri would surely kill him in his sleep. Or _Dwalin_ , judging from the dark look the dwarf was giving him.

"Well, then, I can only hope that in time we can prove just how useful we could be to you and to the company," Aleksi glanced at Meri and saw her hesitantly nodding at him in encouragement, "As to your question, yes, I see these dreams too. However, my-ah, _visions-,"_ he inwardly snickered at the word, wondering just what the hell had Meri and Gandalf been feeding to these dwarves, _"-_ don't come as often and aren't as accurate as Meri's but nonetheless they are pretty much the same stuff. It's as Gandalf said, you need us in this quest. We are here to give you help with whatever comes across you while on the road." _'And after it. Dude._ _ **Especially**_ _after it._ '

"Yes, yes, that much I've already gathered," Thorin said impatiently, not keen on playing nice anymore, "But Gandalf insists-," he gave a quick grim look to the wizard, "-that you've dreamed the outcome of this quest, along with other things that concerns me and my company. Whether I believe this or not, I doubt that the wizard would completely lie of such things, and though this all sounds like a big hoax to me, I'll give you a chance to humor me for a while. So have a go for it," he said and gestured to the humans in a way as if allowing them to do their magic, "Tell us. Reveal all you know. Just what lies for us in the future you claim to have seen?"

Everyone around the table seemed to be holding their breaths as Thorin leaned further on the table, watching the blond man with such a fiery intensity in his sapphire eyes it would have made any grown-ass man suddenly stutter and blush with odd thoughts. Luckily, Aleksi was more than accustomed to that kind of passionate eye-playing (though, mostly by him and in a flirty fashion) that the heated stare of the dwarf King left him unaffected, if not a slightly satisfied to know that he had something Thorin desperately seemed to want. Meri, beside him, however, was not as fortunate as him, with her being woman and all, and as she took in the blazing intensity of Thorin's eyes she was left standing there with swooning legs and a red face. Aleksi wondered if he should be getting ready to catch her when needed.

Thorin licked his lips, only one thought in his mind as he leaned even further on the table, his gaze boring into Aleksi's brown eyes as he whispered the words out.

"Are we to be successful in reclaiming Erebor?"

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 _EDITED 2019_

 _"Men like him inspire my inner serial killer." -All women ever_

 _So much staring. So much ogling. So much eye-molesting._

 _Let me introduce you to Aleksi Ek and Meri Karhu! I seriously_ _get all giddy and giggling when_ _writing these two nutters_ _, they're just so fun to play around with._ _Thorin's a huge self-centered asswipe with some serious anger issues - a big surprise there! Though, there's so much more in him than just being a people hating sourpuss just like there's so much more in every single character in this story. I want to tell about these other qualities too and about the traits and behavior that people often tend to put aside._

 _Shout out to Midnight Moon Lupine for the first review, hope you enjoyed this chapter as well!_

 _Stay strong, stay safe and always use protection, people. And gimme feedback._

 _Secretly yours,_

 _Miss Always Wrong._


	3. Chapter 2

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Chapter 2 - Of Old Magic and a Smith

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" _So. How long do you suppose a man can go on without eating?" Aleksi asked frustrated, massaging his rumbling belly with a pained look on his face, "Don't need to sound too alarmed here or anything, but this is getting a little bit too painful already. I think I'm starting to decompose over here. My stomach is eating itself. Let me tell you, this isn't going to be a pretty sight in the end."_

 _Meri focused her tired legs to go onward. Her mind went back to her school days and the health education lessons. "Without food? Can't say for sure… It's surprisingly long time though. We're talking about several weeks here. I've once heard of this one crazy man who claimed he'd survived 62 days without eating a thing. But I think that's only if you're healthy enough from the begin with. Depends on how much fat you've got to spent, what sort of a physical strain your body goes through-."_

 _Aleksi stopped walking and stared at the mess of a girl next to him, interrupting her. "Several weeks?!" he exclaimed unbelieving, "No way. I don't think so. I think I'll just die today and get it done with, thank you very much."_

 _Meri sighed out miserably, feeling her own stomach twisting in hunger too. After the freezing cold night she and Aleksi had spent clutching tightly onto each other there had been nothing but endless forest and wild-life surrounding them. It had been two days since they had submerged from the depths into the middle of nowhere. No society, no buildings, no humans, not even the simplest path for them to follow. Not a t_ _hing_ _that was helpful or familiar anywhere in their sights. Two days of walking through the woods. Nothing but walking and, shamefully, crying on Meri's part. Two days without eating or drinking much, picking only random berries and greenery that they happened to come across with. Two days of not bathing and wearing the same clothes they had when first getting in there. Two days of walking... and Meri didn't even have any goddamn shoes on. The girl was physically falling apart. Her stomach was starving, feet were covered in blisters, lips chapped with dehydration and body smelling more foul she ever remembered smelling before in her whole entire life. Not talking about the situation that was going on with her hair. Yep. She didn't even want to begin to think about the condition her hair was in._

 _Still, this all meant nothing compared to the state of her mental health. Ever since she had found herself in the middle of that cursed lake, there had been this awful constant doubt that she had lost whatever bit of sanity she had in her. She was sure she was wrecked for good. Unbalanced inside her head. A fucking goner. Just like the man she had been dumped into this hell with._

" _It's not the hunger that'll kill you, you know," the girl muttered out, and winced when accidentally stepping onto another sharp stone, cursing for the hundred time her bruised feet, "It's the lack of water that'll do the trick. Without any sufficient amount of water, I don't think you'll even last a whole week."_

 _Aleksi massaged his dirt-smudged face. "A week! A week…! Well, fuck me! That's like, five days to go still…!" he groaned out mostly to himself, "Aaah shit, should've known this. If water doesn't manage to drown me, the lack of it will goddamn dehydrate me to death. And that doesn't sound like a quick and painless way to go either…" he muttered grumpily, running his hands through his greasy blond hair._

 _Meri felt a wave of dizziness washing through her and she had to grab a hold of Aleksi's arm to keep herself from stumbling onto her butt. The man immediately took a grip of her and gave her the support she needed to stay on her feet._

" _Oh man-! Meri, all good there? Getting dizzy again?" Aleksi asked worriedly and guided the small girl to sit on the grassy ground for a while._

" _Yeah," Meri muttered with an embarrassed tone, hating the fact that she was feeling weak when Aleksi was still all good and standing, "Yeah. I just-. Need a moment, that's all. It'll go past. Give me a sec and I'll be good to go again."_

 _Aleksi nodded warily and let his gaze drop down to her bruised feet which the girl had covered with Aleksi's socks two days ago._

 _"Lemme see now. How bad are they..." Aleksi muttered and took her dirty feet to his hands, taking off the torn socks to inspect the skin under them with a sympathetic look, "Ai, that doesn't look too good… Not good at all. Meri, for real, you should just take my shoes like I told you before. I don't think you should walk like this anymore. You're going to seriously damage your feet otherwise. Wreck your nerve-system of some shit like that, you know, get some fancy medical problem with them and all…"_

 _Meri shut her eyes, waiting for the dizziness to go away. She was already in a bad mood enough and the man was irritating her even more with his stupid statements. It had been like that for the past two days and right now she really felt like she couldn't handle another minute alone with him. She just knew her temper would explode straight at his face in a rather ugly way if he didn't shut up,_ _ **right at that moment**_ _. And she didn't want to do that to him. He had done nothing seriously wrong to her and like she, he too was a helpless victim in this god-awful situation. But that didn't change the fact that he was maddening as fuck, currently annoying the living daylight out of her._

 _'But then again, mama always did say I was too temperamental for my own good. That I was just a nightmare to deal with as a kid when I was being hungry and tired. A horrible brat with an unbelievable appetite, she said. And little have I changed since those days.' Her throat suddenly tightened with the thought of her mother and her anger was gone like that. 'I'm sorry mama. I'm sorry for being a difficult brat. I was always such a brat to you. I'm so sorry. And I'm sorry for dying this way-. For-, for you never getting to find out what happened to me. Oh god, what would I give to be at home with you again…!'_

" _Hey," Aleksi nudged the girl gently and grasped her hand into his, immediately giving her the needed comfort much like the way when they had first met, "Hey… Don't. Now. Don't do that," he muttered dejected and squeezed her hand, "I hate to see you cry. You've been doing that kind of a lot lately and to be honest, it doesn't really suit you. I don't want to be rude or anything but you look-. Ah man, you look just awful. With puffy red eyes and all… Snot running down... It's bad. Really. You're an ugly crier and I wish you'd just stop giving me these creeps."_

 _Meri snorted at his bad attempt at cheering her up and slapped the man's hand away from her. The wetness in her eyes still remained but she looked more determined than before. "Oh yeah? Well. I don't mean to sound rude either but fuck you and shut up. You're really shit at this, you know that right?"_

 _Aleksi shrugged half-heartily and gave her a slight smirk, one that looked more sad than playful on his exhausted face. "Girl, you wound me with your words. And here I was, ready to give you a piggyback ride to spare you from any further-," but the man never finished with his talking when all of the sudden something else in the forest caught his attention._

 _He_ _held out his hand for the girl as a sign to stay quiet as_ _he listened carefully._

" _Do you hear that…?" Aleksi whispered to Meri, his eyes searching the woods._

 _Meri's heartbeat picked up speed and she perked her ears in hopes of catching_ _whatever it was that Aleksi_ _was onto. And indeed, she did hear._

" _It sounds like…" she muttered, eyes squinting and looking all over the forest, "Hooves…?"_

" _Ah shit…" Aleksi breathed out once finally making out whatever it was that made the sound._

 _The man stood up slowly and watched ahead of them, unbelieving what was coming right at their way. "Jesus Christ. No way. Just-. No, fucking, way…"_

" _Dumbledore… Man… Aren't you supposed to be dead?!"_

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"Now we're finally getting to the important means," Gandalf spoke up, keeping everyone's attention to himself, "First, however, I think this tale needs to be told from the very beginning of all. When I, quite unexpectedly too, first met these two wandering in the middle of Chetwood lost and exhausted and without any proper supplies on them."

Meri and Aleksi exchanged looks. A wave of nostalgia passed through them. That day two years ago was an important fate-changing occasion, one that would be stuck forever in their heads. They had been so clueless back then. So, so very clueless of the meaning of all. Then. Out of nowhere came Gandalf the Gray. To save their lost sorry-asses.

"You can only imagine my surprise once I came across them – there they stood, two completely oblivious men, muddy from head to toe and tired beyond belief, wearing the most peculiar choice of clothing I have ever witnessed those of man-kind wearing! And with no awareness of where they were or any memory of how they had ended up in there…! Curious, I told myself. Most curious, indeed."

Thorin pursed his lips together and listened the story with an impatient look on his face. He was not up for tales at that moment, not when he only wanted to hear of was Erebor. The only thing that mattered was the future of Lonely Mountain and Thorin had the strongest feeling that Gandalf was only trying to pass that subject with his foolish prattles. And besides-, Thorin glanced with a distaste at Meri's more than over-sized clothing for the fourth time that night, - _besides_ , it seemed that the girl was used to wearing those so called 'peculiar choice of clothing' with an everyday basis anyway.

"Oh, yes…" Gandalf mused out dramatically while slowly stroking his beard and looking thoughtfully at Meri and Aleksi, "It was a rather fortunate coincidence how our paths decided to cross each other. For certainly I had no way of knowing in advance about that little encounter. I did have a small hunch in me, call it an inkling or need of some sort, that made me travel that specific path on that day," the wizard's tone turned more distant, wondering, and then he all but whispered out the words; "Funny how it all played out... I knew not who they were. Nor _what_ they were."

That caught Thorin's attention. His narrowed sapphire orbs jumped immediately to take second looks of the two humans.

"What mean you?" Thorin asked quietly while trying to locate something off in the appearances of Meri and Aleksi, "Are they not men after all?"

Aleksi let out a loud offended sound and crossed his arms in front of him. "Well, I'll say! This is news to us too! How come you've never mentioned this before, Gandalf my pal? Just what did you think we were then? Orcs? Leprechauns? Jeez, I know Meri is one short little goblin-girl but now you're just being a big bully and insulting her! She cannot help her height, man! You know that!"

"Ai!" Meri blurted out surprised to be dragged into the conversation in such a rude way and slapped the man next to her on his arm, "What the-?! Leave my height out of this and let Gandalf talk, you big idiot! Why'd you go say something like that in the first place!? Huh? It's not like you're a skyscraper yourself!"

"Now there!" Gandalf barged in before the bickering got any bigger, "I must ask you to let me speak without interruptions! I'm an old man already and my mind is easy to wander if given the chance. Right now I do think it would be wise to stay on the subject in hand rather than talk about other unrelated matters. And that goes especially for _you_ , Mister Ek." At this, Aleksi was raising his arms up as a way of saying 'What did I do?' but Gandalf just gave him one pointed look that immediately made him shut up, "Oh, don't fool yourself thinking I have forgotten all about you and your very _charming_ manners. Not at all! Let me tell you my boy, if you cannot control your constantly on-going mouth, it will be no trouble for me to lend a helping hand and use one of my tricks to _silence you._ With very much the same way I've done in the past, should you still remember yourself."

Meri smiled in a little bit too smug way as Aleksi was frozen to look at the strict-faced wizard. He remembered very well the way Gandalf had once or twice lost his patience with him and then straight out - and without any words of warning - chanted quick spells under his breath, flicked his fingers and _bam!_ left Aleksi completely mute and gagging with the sudden loss of words. The feeling of one's tongue going dead and heavy in their mouth was truthfully more than an unpleasant experience, one that the man would very much like to never have to go through with again.

"O-of course," Aleksi cleared his throat while moving his tongue inside his mouth as if scared of suddenly losing the control of it, "Please, Gandalf, do continue, would you now?"

Gandalf gave him a pleased nod and turned over to Thorin's side again.

"As I was saying-," he continued, pausing to recall the point where had been stopped, "I was not certain _what_ they were," he repeated and once seeing the alerted look in Thorin's eyes jumped to explain further, "Of course I knew they were men in most part, my eyes rarely lie to me even at my age, but outer appearances can be deceitful and what our eyes see can be very misleading from the truth that lies beneath."

Aleksi jerked funnily, wanting to say exactly what he though of that, but one quick slap on his arm from the short girl next to him was enough to keep him quiet.

"My eyes saw men but my other senses begged different," Gandalf mused out, watching the humans with a curious glint in his eyes, "I could _smell_ something off in them, something else than that of a man. The smell, it was foreign. Very curious one too. And clearly something that was not born in them - instead it had been added later on. This something, it lingered on these men and refused to leave though its former owner already had. Like a parasite it held onto them and forced a place for itself in their natural scent, crawled under it and made a nest there."

Aleksi looked at Gandalf with a gaping mouth and wide horrified eyes, not liking at all what he was hearing. " _Oh my god_! I know I promised to be shush and all, but could you _not_ talk about it like that? That just sounds fucking disgusting, man! People will think we're diseased or something! Horribly abused or some shit like that…!".

Even Meri had to agree with him. She nodded her head with a troubled frown on her face. "I _do_ feel rather violated now…" she muttered, making the man beside her snort and bite in the dirty side comment he automatically thought of.

Gandalf gave the human duo a narrow-eyed look and then went on with his tale like he hadn't been interrupted at all.

"A touch of magic that was…" the wizard explained to the dwarves, "The smell that was on these two. And I'm talking of old magic here. Much older than that anyone I know of is capable of doing. Much, much older… and more powerful."

Thorin's frown got deeper and not only because of Gandalf's words but also because he could sense the growing uneasiness in his dwarves around him. The company had remained strangely silent for now and that was more than unusual for such a brawling bunch. It made Thorin all too aware of the coming explosion. The wizard had better make his explanation quick if he wanted to save himself from the loud questioning of twelve relentless dwarves in his table.

"It still lingers on them," Gandalf carried on with his tale while taking that sort of an annoyingly mysterious tone he was known of using when it came to certain exceptional matters, "Yes, perhaps slightly weaker now than before, but still as stubborn in refusing to disappear. This magic... I strongly suspect it's the cause of the whole situation we have in our hands. The very reason why they are here. Why they see glimpses of events in the past and future." His face turned more serious and cautious. "Someone has brought these men here by magic, that much is certain. Someone has broken several laws of nature and played with the old sacred balance of life by bringing them here. This someone…" he wondered to himself, stroking his beard again, "It's curious. You see, there is no one in Middle Earth powerful enough to touch such sacred things as the balance of life itself…"

Thorin couldn't help but to arch a brow to that. He didn't need any closer explanation, he knew just what Gandalf meant.

"What you're implying is…" the leader dwarf muttered out, suddenly not finding the will to finish his sentence. With the side of his eye, he noticed the other dwarves restlessly fidgeting and shuffling around in their places all while whispering to each other in Khuzdul. Thorin had the strongest feeling that they wouldn't be able to control their nature for much longer.

Gandalf nodded to him with grim face and eyes holding a glint of worry in them. "I am certain. One of the Valar has had their hands in this."

Thorin was quick to reject that thought. "Impossible," the dwarf commented and held out a silencing hand for his dwarves when hearing them start more than a hushed debate over the matter. "Gandalf, don't take us for fools. This is-. Mahal, this is impossible!"

"It's not," Gandalf opposed with a frustrated tone, "As I have already told you. It's an enormous risk and a gamble, perhaps inhuman in several ways and very foolish... But certainly _not_ impossible."

Thorin felt his mouth go dry. Strange thoughts were passing through his mind - thoughts that were getting more and more surreal by every passing second. "Why?" he questioned while slowly shaking his head, "Why would the Valar do such a thing?" he swallowed with a dry throat and looked at Gandalf, "And why Erebor of all things? What has our quest has to do with any of this?"

Gandalf gave the dwarf a sympathetic look, sensing the great amount of unease in him. "Oh Thorin… It has _everything_ to do with this. I suspect it was the very reason of all this trouble."

Noticing the clear pity in the wizard's eyes, Thorin automatically straightened his back on his seat and held his chin up higher, answering that look with a challenging one of his own. There were lot of things in Middle Earth he strongly disliked, betrayal and elves being the guaranteed top contestants for obvious natural reasons. Having someone show him pity or mercy definitely belonged to the tip bunch of that Mahal-forsaken iceberg as well. He had long ago learned not to lay his trust on anyone's compassion. He wanted no sympathy, no condolence, no nothing from anyone anymore. Not from strange man-dreamers, not from Gandalf, not even from the Valar themselves. _'Why would they remember us now, when long ago we were in dire need of their help and they all but chose to turn their backs on us?_ _Why, when they all but let the dragon come and bathe the whole Lonely Mountain in fire, and then watched aside as my people suffered for years after that?'_

"If what you're saying is true... Then…" Thorin began hesitantly as if fearing for the answer, "Is this all supposed to aid us with our goal, or… to make sure we are to fail?"

"I doubt this was made with ill intentions… Not at all. There's only one Vala I can think of who would go to such lengths to give you help, Thorin. Only one whose love for dwarves is fierce enough to cross the other Valar in a way like this."

Thorin closed his eyes and breathed in slowly. Yes. There was only one who it could be and only one who he dared to lay his hope on.

"Mahal…" he muttered out, a flicker of warmness rousing in his chest. The mere thought brought comfort to him. Lightness. Hope. _It was so deceitful._

Had Mahal finally taken notice of their misery? Had he answered their prayers and given this quest his blessing?

"Yes," Gandalf nodded, pleased of Thorin's reaction, "I can smell the magic of Aulë on these children - hot, strong, and unyielding. It seems he's been-, how should I put this... _Molding_ them in a way I cannot put my finger on… No doubt he has used his skills of a smith on these men. But in what way, I cannot tell."

Aleksi let out a sudden strangled gasp, stealing the attention to himself again. His earlier horrified face turned into an even more ghastly one as he held his hand on his heart, spluttering to the wizard;

" _Whoa, whoa, whoa now…_! Now, wait a moment there Gandalf, my man! I know we've gone through all this crap talk about being thrown into this hellhole by one of those ancient godly dudes, but-! 'Molding', you say? As in _modifying_ my body? As in-! As in cutting open… and removing… and replacing random body parts!? _My_ random body parts?! What the hell?! What's that about!? And with whose permission!? Isn't there laws out there that goes against these sort of sick, twisted crimes? Laws to protect us innocent people from these awful perversions? What the bloody hell is this all the sudden - the human centipede _? Fuck me_!" He took in a deep dramatic breath, dismissing the horrified expressions on the dwarves' faces when witnessing him cursing so boldly. "I've got _no_ memories of any of this! Of anyone smithing me or wielding their hammers at me, man! Trust me, _I would fucking know!_ Ain't no one wielding their hammers at me! No one, you hear me!"

The table fell silent, all eyes looking at Aleksi like they had never seen a man before. More than few had forgotten their mouths open.

"Oh, my, god, _no,_ " Meri muttered under her breath and covered her eyes with her hand in a mortified manner. She knew exactly how foolishly blunt and straight-forward Aleksi was by his nature but still she had hoped - and god how she had hoped - for him to behave like a normal person just for that one night. Then again, Aleksi had already arrived late trying to seduce a lady for himself, so perhaps it was Meri's own stupid fault for putting her expectations so high. Perhaps, in all honesty, she should have just prepared herself for shit to start happening. _'But wh_ _y Aleksi? Why'd you have to do this to me?'_

The dwarves clearly thought the same. The man's vulgar outburst was the last straw for their self-control.

"Did he just ask someone to-?"

"IN FRONT OF THE MISS! Who brought this brute in here again? This is no way to talk when there's a miss in presence!"

"Durin's balls, this must be a grand jest! The **Thârkun's** pullin' a prank on us!"

"Ye think so? I'm getting more and more certain this's no joke 'n this lad is in fact being serious."

"Aye. I fear so too."

"Could someone tell me what's this 'human centipede'?"

"Outrageous! I don't see any signs of Maker in this man! And I think it's a disgrace to attach his name to this freak show going on in here!"

"Don't care of that, but would you just stop spilling your ale on me already!"

"Oh bugger. Oh dear. These dwarves. This is getting out of hands again…"

 **BAM!**

The whole table went silent again as Thorin banged his fist onto the table. Empty dishes clattered around the table and ale spilled from pints, plenty of it ending up all over the dwarves but the look that Thorin was giving to the company was enough for them to shut their mouths. The icy gaze traveled around to make sure they all obeyed before it settled back to Gandalf, unhappy as ever.

"Well-," Thorin said with a heavily sarcastic undertone in his voice, "-then Mahal certainly owns a sense of humor, doesn't he now…? Sending us these... _Individuals._ To aid us."

Aleksi crossed his arms in front of him and huffed out in an offended way. He wasn't going to stay put and silent while people around him were being pricks to him.

"Well _excuse-fucking-me_. You're making this sound awfully a lot like we actually _asked_ to be here to begin with! That's a damn wrong impression you've got there buddy, a goddamn wrong. Let me get things straight for once and for-."

Meri stopped Aleksi by quickly grabbing a tight hold of his collar and bringing the taller man down to her level. The man let out a surprised gasp at the sudden jerk.

" _Shut up_ Aleksi! This is getting way out of the line. And I'm currently this close doing something awful to you, you hear me? _This close_ ,-" the girl held her index finger and thumb close to the man's face, "We stay _quiet_ for now on and let Gandalf handle this. Do you understand me? You don't get to say another word or, god help me, I swear before the dawn breaks I'll be digging a hole to dump your butchered body into. Do you understand me, you little piece of-?"

Gandalf cleared his throat, ignored the bickering humans and talked to Thorin who kept on staring at the couple with an unreadable expression on his face.

"There must have been a reason why Aulë picked these two. Why he meddles with their dreams and inflicts events concerning Erebor into them. There must have been something he saw in them… Something special indeed," the wizard mused while looking at Aleksi with disappointed, criticizing eyes as if trying to spot something extraordinary hidden somewhere deep inside his being.

Aleksi answered the judging stare with a narrow-eyed look of his own, still hunching because of Meri's iron grip on him. "And what's this now? You're starting to sound awfully lot like you're not that impressed of us either Gandalf…! How could you? I thought we were buddies!" he accused while struggling to get rid of Meri's grip, "And for fucks sake, let go of me already, you tiny woman!"

Meri's face was turning red from anger. "Seriously, your trap needs to be shut and-!"

Thorin frowned at the pair as the girl continued to discipline the man. He willed himself to move on with the conversation with Gandalf. "Alright then," he cleared his throat and sat straighter, "Now, about the dreams then. I've already told you, there's only one thing I'm interested in knowing, and that's Erebor. What have they seen?"

Gandalf nodded, getting back to the business. "And now we are back to the matter I wanted to make clear with you. These dreams Meri and Aleksi see, well, as it happens, I have strictly forbid them letting anyone else know about them."

He told this like it was the simplest thing to say, but after these news, the whole company exploded again.

"You've-, you've-!? What! Forbid them!? By my beard, why'd you do such a thing?!"

"Aye, what's the use of them then?! Someone enlighten me!"

"I'll tell ye, these men-folk have nothin' to tell us! All this talk about seein' the future, about bein' sent here by the Maker, that's all just a huge load of orc dun'!"

"Agreed! This is just too unbelievable to be true! I said it once, and I'll say it again; it's a disgrace to involve Mahal into this mad humbug!"

"Aye, but woo boy, what a tale it is! 'tis getting better 'n better all the time!"

"More like getting closer to a hoax, that is! I say, if they're seers, let them prove it!"

"So, let 'em prove themselves then!"

"Aye! Give us a proof!"

"We demand a proof!"

"And more ale!"

Meri finally let go of Aleksi's shirt and closed her eyes while massaging her temples, muttering out; " _I_ demand a drink for myself too if this shouting goes on much longer… We're not making any progress here!"

Aleksi on the other hand laughed gleefully like he was having the time of his life. "Ha! Well fuck me, what an uproar! This is even better than what I imagined! What a show! Gandalf, I told you they'd flip out once you let out the big secret!"

Gandalf gave him a small frown, a flicker of warning in his eyes. "Dear boy, I'm beginning to think you have no respect for me at all…"

Aleksi raised his hands up as a sign of surrender. "Oh no, no… I'm respectful, really respectful towards you, my man."

Thorin once more managed to silence his dwarves and then bluntly said to Gandalf; "You surely are jesting."

"I would not jest with such matters," Gandalf shrugged lightly, maddening Thorin even further with his carefree attitude.

"This is _madness_!" the dwarf King growled, "Are you trying to tell me, that here I have two seers in my presence for the next coming months all the way to the Lonely Mountain, two who know exactly what is to happen and what to expect, two who has already seen the outcome of the very purpose why my company is gathered today-! _And I'm not allowed to use this ability they have for my advantage_? This is absurd! What tricks are you playing, wizard?!"

And surprisingly the company backed him up right away.

"Aye! Explain us, wizard!"

"Hear, hear! No more beating around the bush, we want a clear, straight answer for once!"

"By me beard… With the wit of this bunch, he could squeeze up the whole tale into three wee words 'n ye _still_ wouldn't understand!"

"I beg your pardon!"

"Are you calling us witless?!"

"Oi! Who's witless here?!"

"Watch your mouth!"

Gandalf sighed in a sad way and exchanged a tired look with Balin. They were both very much in the same level when it came to trying to hold down this bunch of loudmouths. This certainly wasn't the first time they had made silent eye contacts over the matter. It was always the same thing – once someone started the aimless shouting contest there was no end to it, not without the help of Thorin. And right at that moment, Thorin sure looked like he was anything but willing to calm down the dwarves, not when his own eyes were glaring daggers at the wizard too. Gandalf and Balin both had a horrible suspicion that the night was far from over, and that long and exhausting hours were still ahead of them.

"The explanation is a rather simple one, if only you were calm enough to consider everything you have just heard tonight," Gandalf began with a tone of a parent speaking to a child, "I understand your frustration over the matter Thorin, but right now, you're only viewing this with the perspective of yourself - with only one single individual in a world where there's considerable number of others too. I'm talking of the greater good right now. The very future of the whole Middle Earth and _not_ just your Lonely Mountain."

Thorin gritted his teeth not appreciating getting spoken to in such a way as if he was still some clueless dwarfling. "So you keep on saying. But any knowledge concerning Erebor belongs to the _dwarves_ , does it not?!" he heatedly argued against him, earning a bunch of agreeing grunts from the company, "You have no right to keep it from us!"

Aleksi's eyebrows rose high on his forehead. Gandalf certainly would have kicked his ass was he to speak so rudely back at him. Unlike him, Thorin sure seemed to be safe from sudden spells aimed at him and that somewhat annoyed the man. Things didn't seem to be rolling around very equally here. _'Guess it's one of those perks of being a King. You can go around shouting at wizards without getting your tongue hexed. Just try to stand in my shoes and do the same. You'll get muted in a second, man. Like a goddamn television, I'll tell you.'_

"No right?" Gandalf huffed out first but then granted; "Alright, that's fair enough. Perhaps I don't have the right to withhold anything from you, after all who really does have the right to do so? Originally none of this had anything to do with me. I wasn't involved in the slightest. I got no part in anything. I could've just left it all on its own. Just step aside and look safely from the distance how things ought to go," the wizard shrugged easily at that, "But you see, these two came to me and sought for _my_ counseling. Sought for my wisdom and advice. Could I have declined stepping in and getting myself meddled into all of this? Why, of course I could have. It would have been very easy to refuse taking any part, to not to share my own opinion of any matters concerning them. Very easy, indeed…"

Gandalf had a small pause there, purely for dramatic measures. He took his sweet time swiping off some non-existing dust from his robes before lifting up his eyes to see the expecting looks of the company who waited for him to continue. The wizard smirked inwardly and did just that.

"I did not refuse, as you see. And not for a second have I regretted that decision. They trusted on me from the very beginning, as if they had known me for all their lives, and sought for my wisdom as if it was the most valuable thing to have. And I gave it to them. Of course I did."

Meri and Aleksi looked at each other with peculiar faces. The wizard spoke the truth - they had trusted Gandalf right from the very beginning, of course they had. They would have been fools not to. Right after they gotten rid of the shock of realizing what was going on and finally understanding where exactly they had ended up in. Right after those painfully emotional weeks after first meeting him. Right after all the stubborn denying, and the hot-boiling anger, and the inexplicable sorrow that had come once they had realized there was no way back to home. Things had been one huge-ass rollercoaster with their feelings, but not once had they questioned their trust on Gandalf. Actually, trusting on Gandalf the Grey was funnily the only thing they trusted themselves to do. He had saved them after all. That was something they could never repay to him.

"Now. I have counseled these two into not revealing any significant details, not to you or to anyone else, even _myself_ included," Gandalf continued with a more serious tone, speaking directly to Thorin once again, "Why? Simply because meddling with destined future is a dangerous thing to do, and these two just happen to know much more than is safe for anyone in Middle Earth to know. I really cannot tell what Aulë was thinking, sending these two here with such destructive tools in their hands, but I'm beginning to consider the possibility that perhaps even he himself wasn't completely aware of just how wide their knowledge and memory truly was... Thorin, we're talking about matters that will take place much further in the future than just the events regarding Erebor… We're talking about several decades after. Of things that, I fear, are shadowed by great evil – something I dare not to speak out loud until the time is right."

Thorin frowned, having calmed down from his previous anger and considered things with a new view of mind. He licked his lips, deep in thought. "By a great evil…? What makes you so wary, Gandalf?"

Gandalf merely shook his head, closing his eyes. "This will not be discussed any further. Not with me. Not with these men. Hear my warning Thorin; ask no more. You don't need to know."

Thorin felt like huffing out in frustration. The wizard kept on dancing around important subjects, teasing him with bits of juicy information and then refusing to share the secret. It was maddening. Something big was occurring, something big and dangerous, and as far as Thorin knew, his Mountain was somehow related to this. Though how and why, he didn't know and apparently wasn't even allowed to ask. But... Gandalf seemed almost afraid and that wasn't right. A wizard should never be afraid.

Gandalf sighed a little at the displeased expression on Thorin's face and tried to explain; "I am only thinking of the common good for all of us, Master Dwarf. Some things, some events, are safer to be left unfold on their own in the way they are meant to, don't you think so too? Everything is connected to everything. If you should know your future, all that comes in your way, both the good and the bad, would you not decide to change your path and avoid facing the less pleasant situations? As it just happens, some things are not to be prevented, _cannot be_ prevented… for all we know it could lead into a big disaster later on," he said with a haughty tone, eyes unfocused and seemingly lost in troubling thoughts.

Thorin took in the well-masked fear in Gandalf's pale eyes and felt himself immediately burdened of the future too. He too had sensed these small peculiar warning signs of a big change in the air. Thorin wasn't dim nor was he blind, he had lived quite the time already and of course he had noted things being different during his travels nowadays – heard the hushed whispers of the rising numbers of orcs and goblins, and seen dead grounds in areas that used to be well and alive just decades before… Something wasn't right in Middle Earth, Thorin felt it in his bones. It felt like something infectious was growing and secretly spreading all around.

A lung-twisting anxiety came with these dark thoughts and along with it grew the burning need to get his dwarves quickly into safety – inside the sturdy walls of Erebor where danger couldn't reach them so easily. His people – Thorin let his eyes travel through the company, feeling a strange panic grow in his heart – his people needed to be protected against the growing evil in Middle Earth. And now that his father was still missing with the strongest assumption of being dead, it fell on Thorin's shoulders to take care of the folk of Durin. It was his responsibility and duty to keep them all safe.

"Durin's folk needs to get back inside the Lonely Mountain," Thorin whispered more to himself than to anyone else and then abruptly turned to look back at the wizard, "Getting Erebor back is all that matters to me Gandalf. Too long has my kin been exposed in the open ground like an easy prey. Too long have they been forced to be separated from the safety of the Lonely Mountain's stone walls. Too long, Gandalf… And if this is what it takes for us to reach our home…" the dwarf King swallowed and felt a jab of guilt in him. Then he turned to look at the human duo with eyes like steel and continued; "I'll allow you to come and ride with us. Not because I want or wish so, but because of the current circumstances along with Gandalf's will are forcing me to do so. **However** -," the dwarf suddenly growled in a tone of a warning, "-don't you even for a second fool yourself with the thought of actually _belonging_ as a part of my company. I do not know you, do not trust you, nor shall I ever feel the need to do so. You two are mere strangers who just happen to know too much and that is the only reason why I let you come."

Aleksi narrowed his eyes at the leader dwarf. Meri had her grip on his arm to remind him to remain politely silent for now, trying to keep him in his place and not to take another step closer to the table, as Thorin was clearly not done talking to them yet. All the dwarves around the table looked intensely back and forth from Thorin to the humans, waiting what was to happen next. Some were exchanging glances and making nonverbal bets of the outcome.

Thorin licked his lips and pinched the bridge of his nose still trying to smother the growing headache, wondering just how the night had turned out to be such a disaster. But what was even worse than the pain in his head was the ache on his right side, the old wounds there were awakening again, flaring up with the familiar burning pain just like they always did when he was in distress for too long.

"I don't know yet whether to believe Gandalf with this-, _mad tale,_ of you being brought here by Mahal. If you truly are seers and have seen the outcome of this journey, or, if you are just sent by someone with evil intentions in order to stop us from reaching the Lonely Mountain… I have much more important matters to think of than figuring out what you two really are seeking after," he tensed and clenched his jaw.

"However, if the latter is the case, know that we _will_ find out sooner or later, and you'll pay deeply for trying to deceive us." Thorin's face turned grim and eyes grew heavy-lidded as he remembered all the times he had had to feel the bitter taste of someone's betrayal. "You'd be fools to think you could be successful with your plans, and even bigger fools if you truly try to seize this chance to go against me. If either one of you shows a sign of treacherous intentions, should you mislead us or put my company in a form of danger, or if I ever find out you've been leaking information to a third party… It's widely known that the wrath of dwarves' is legendary. That stands for a reason." Thorin gave the humans a look of warning.

" _Do_ _not come into my way, children_. Do not try to come in between me and my Mountain. Do not even play with the very idea. Reaching Erebor is all I'm after. And coming into my way would make me very, very angry. And if the dwarves' wrath is that of a legendary, that of mine knows no limits. It will be your last mistake to make me angry."

Aleksi crossed his arms in front of him, his jaw clenching and face so grim it was as if he was hearing a death sentence coming from Thorin. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. It was like Thorin was treating them like some criminals, ready at any time to unsheathe his sword and behead them should he be given the slightest reason to. Aleksi breathed in heavy, angry breaths. _He was no criminal!_ He had done nothing to deserve such hatred and-, and _discrimination_ showed at him. And most of all, he was no _child_! He was there only because it was where he belonged and that was a fact he knew in his heart and in his bones. He belonged beside the company, so why could not Thorin see it too?

Meri eyed at Aleksi with the corner of her eye and moved an inch closer to the taller man to remind him she was still there by his side, knowing very well he sometimes had the tendency to forget about her existence and the support she always gave to him in situations like this. The girl nudged slightly at Aleksi's arm and then made sure to catch Thorin's gaze, her own face serious and as hard as his when she answered in one short, challenging word that made the dwarf King frown twice as bad at her.

" _Agreed_."

Thorin noticed easily the tenseness in the humans and a small part of him had hoped to get them fired up with him. The stubbornness and defiance in the two was so clear it almost reeked out of them and that was something that got under Thorin's skin. They would be trouble for him, he just knew it. Though, admittedly, for some odd reason they seemed to look at him with respect in their eyes, but Thorin just knew that respect wouldn't be enough and at some point the humans would refuse to follow his command and therefore cause him problems. They would be a nuisance for him, two irritating louses he couldn't get rid of no matter how he wanted to. _'Mahal, what have you done to me? Why have you sent me these men misfits? Just what am I to do with them?'_ Durin… Thorin could only hope there was _no more of these freaks_ crawling through Middle Earth heading his way.

The dwarf leader clenched his jaw, still gazing at Meri with a deep displeasure. ' _And a woman of all-! A tiny, woman-child, buried underneath a pile of massive clothing! Oh Mahal, why do you do this to me?'_

"Also, Mister _Ekk_ ," Thorin added with a quick afterthought as he was looking at the short girl, a frown once more creeping on his face at the odd surname, "Just to make matters clear, taking care of your Lady companion falls entirely onto your shoulders. I will not have a feeble little woman in the back, whining about the roughness of the road, slowing us down for whatever reasons. She will be your responsibility and will not burden my company in any way."

Meri flinched at his words and then hardened her gaze on Thorin. She admitted it stung to hear him speaking of them like they were just some nasty, no-good child spies of the enemy with the sole intention of leading the whole company to a rotten death. Still, even if it stung, she could take it because that was how her mama had raised her to be - to stand silent and strong, while the men-folk talked - and then later prove herself to those doubting little fuckers. But this-. This truly was something she didn't want to take. Not when she had put so much effort into making herself to be the complete opposite of a burden to him! Before Meri knew it, she felt blood starting to boil inside her veins and her right eye beginning to twitch like it always did whenever she was close to a total explosion of a pure raving hot anger. _'A burden?!_ _'_

Aleksi blinked at Thorin words, his own displeasure dissolving right away. He felt a slight grimace making its way on his face, sensing the growing darkness right next to him. He dared not to look at Meri, but knew exactly how badly she was insulted by Thorin at that moment. The dwarf King had been brutal with his words. _'Easy there Meri, hold yourself for a while.'_ The man was about to retort a sarcastic come-back right at Thorin's face but something made him swallow down his rude words. That something was the piercing look from Gandalf right next to Thorin, giving Aleksi a clear last warning. The man was given no choice.

"Why of course," he answered Thorin, though that was far from what he truly wanted to say, "I got Meri's sweet, feeble little back, and she has mine. _J_ _ust like it's always been_ ," the man emphasized with a notch of biting tone that got a narrow-eyed look at his way from Gandalf, "This has never been a problem before, nor will it be one in the future either, that I can promise."

Thorin barely held in an ugly snort. The night was still young but he had heard enough talk of these humans and their silly little tales. He was mentally exhausted by them already and somehow he could anticipate that this would only be the beginning of very difficult times ahead. The journey to his Lonely Mountain would be exhausting.

"Balin-," Thorin said through gritted teeth, something inside him fighting hard against the words coming out, "-write them a contract." He felt physically ill.

 _-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-._

 _EDITED 2019_

" _I don't mean to sound rude, but fuck you and shut up." -Every customer server ever_

 _Dumbledore, is that you, man?_

 _Love it how the dwarves are shouting random comments over each other and causing a small chaos around the table every time they do so. I can also imagine Balin giving his famous dead-exhausted sigh once they're at it again. Everyone's got something to say and they will not be silenced._

 _If you were wondering why Thorin's being so damn difficult and mean towards Aleksi and Meri, that's because he's a sour jackass who doesn't give a flying cracker about the feelings of anyone._

 _Appreciated thanks to MissCallaLilly and dragonegyptianblue for their nice reviews! Praises are always welcome here!_

 _As always, stay strong, stay save people. And use protection._

 _With plenty of 'new year new me' wishes giving to you,_

 _Miss Always Wrong._


	4. Chapter 3

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Chapter 3 - Of Bitterness and Burdens

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Thorin knew he was fortunate. After all, he was blessed with rich inheritance and the royal blood running in his veins. He was blessed with his family and the great legacy promised to him when he was born. Life had blessed him with various luxuries and assets - things that an average dwarf wouldn't even dare to dream to have. His standing was more than worthy, undoubtedly very unjust but nevertheless a great advantage for him. And that was a fact he could not deny. Yet. Yet, as much as he was blessed he was also burdened - burdened with the duty his blood tied him into and with the high expectations his people had of him. They sought impossible from him, they wanted a rescuer, a knight in a shining armor. A hero. Someone who could stop all wrong and return the wealth and glory back to Durin's name. They wanted him to be grand, and glorious, and invincible. An immortal fighter and a great King who would safe them all and restore the Lonely Mountain to its people.

Thorin didn't know how. A king's descendant he might have been but even the rich royal blood in his veins couldn't fight off a dragon alone. He wasn't that almighty and fearsome. He wasn't what his people wanted him to be. He _couldn't_ be. He was just a dwarf same as any other, with real aging flesh and bones and a mortal life that would come to an end at some point. He was a normal person who got exhausted same as anyone else. He couldn't do it all by himself, not even if he wanted to. Yet the expectations were high and well it was known that dwarves were stubborn folk to let anyone or anything change their beliefs. There was only little Thorin could do or say to that. A salvation he must be to his people.

There was just a little 'but' in all that hero act. The inevitable truth was that Thorin was getting old. He was no young dwarf anymore, he knew this and was well aware of that others around him knew it as well. He was getting older and-, he grimaced at the idea, - _weaker_. His body was still powerful as ever. He was strong and hardy, and had a good stamina. But how long would that last? How many good years would still be ahead? This whole aging thing was just a real inconvenience for Thorin. A daily reason for his headaches. For he could already notice changes in him that he had well missed before – how sore his muscles were after training, how his back and joints ached after long rides, how his wounds tended to take longer to heal and above all, how bad his eyesight had become over the years.

Poor eyesight was common for dwarves as their folk mostly lived in darker places, well hidden from daylight and the sun. Dwarven people spent their days inside stone walls, only to be surrounded by gentle flickers of torch light and the rich glow of the golden walls all around them. Their eyes were sensitive to the sun and the blinding brightness it brought. The older a dwarf got, the worse his eyesight turned until it was gone altogether. Poor eyesight was just one part of a dwarven anatomy, just as was their short height and sturdy bones. Blindness was a sad but inevitable fate for some, and Thorin unfortunately belonged to that bunch. He had known this for as long as he could remember because his vision had always been that of a shit one. Even as a young lad the accuracy of his far-sight was much more hazier than other boys his age, and more than once did he cause nothing but embarrassing disasters during his training in archery, leaving him quite determined to avoid holding arrows and bows in his hands again. After the day he almost got fried by the dragon's fire, his eyesight had been growing alarmingly dull with each passing year. Thorin could already tell that if by any luck he ever managed to surpass the age of 250, his sight would be thoroughly gone and he would live whatever years he had in complete pitch darkness. That was another hard-ass fact he couldn't change even if he wanted to and so had just learned to accept and deal with.

Still, before he allowed himself to submit to such a fate of turning into an old blind bat of a dwarf, he had to finish what had started in his younger days _and take back his crown_. For his people's sake. For Durin's folk. For his family. For all those who were dead. _For himself_. The time was here. He had to seize this chance, march back to Erebor, and... Well, wish for the best. He needed to do it. There was a pressing urge in his bones that he needed to hurry up and have it done and over with before something awful had a chance to happen. Before he got too old, too blind or, in the most realistic case, too _dead_ to go for it. He was well aware of the nice prize tag on his head and the very real risk of a bunch of hit men coming at him at any public place he showed his face at, but he was too stubborn to let himself be killed before seeing the grand halls of his beloved Lonely Mountain once more. He had sworn in the name of his honor, in the name of his dead family members and in the name of Mahal himself that death wouldn't have him. Not before he had his Mountain back. And his throne. And the King's jewel. And all the Durin-damned treasure around it.

Perhaps Thorin was too stubborn to die or perhaps it was just luck that had saved him so many times from the clutches of death, but that didn't mean he hadn't lost others around him. Call it a curse, call it his own imagination, or something in between, but Thorin was sure he had the presence of death hovering constantly over him like a dark cloud. A dark fog that had him surrounded at all sides, something that at times would dissolve and fade, but never fully disappear from his life. And always, _always_ , when he least expected, it came back with the rage of a storm, giving him nasty reminders of the claim it had on him. Like a jealous husband, death controlled his life and never let him breath easy or be unguarded. Never gave him the chance to escape and reach out for something better. Death left him with dark thoughts and poisonous feelings, and eventually with a bunch of lifeless people at his feet. Thorin was bitter. So, so very bitter and he had no need to deny this. Such was the way he had grown to be, always surrounded by pain and loss.

Thorin had lost much during his life. More than he wanted to admit to himself or to others. Life had taken one grand fall into an endless pit after the fateful day when Erebor was lost to the dragon. Nothing had gone right after that. The Mountain was taken with the treasures inside it, the Arkenstone buried somewhere among them, along with the throne he was promised to have one day. Then, when aid was most needed with his people, the elves of Mirkwook ignored their pleas of help, refused to take any part of their misfortune and so breaking the trust and long-lasted alliance between dwarves and elves all over the Middle Earth. Thorin had been robbed and cheated out of his intended future, tossed and thrown around duties he had no previous experience of, forced to work like a slave and fight like a barbarian for his people's sake. He had been manipulated, used and lied to. Being given responsibilities beyond measure and forbid to show signs of weakness. He had lost people, _his goddamn precious people_ , to all possible kind of deaths. Friends, family. His grandfather he lost to the dirty hands of an enemy orc. His father he lost to an unknown faith at the very same day. And his little brother-.

 _Dear Mahal, Frerin..._

The battle of Azanulbizar had broken his entire family in so many ways. The line of Durin had almost perished at the end of that fateful day, right at those cursed gates of Moria. Countless other dwarves lied dead there too. Brave warriors who died for nothing. Soldiers who followed the demand of their King who was out his mind, still grieving over the fresh lost of his Mountain and, of course, _the Arkenstone_. Thorin's grandfather.

Frerin wasn't even supposed to be there in the first place. Thrór himself had forbid his youngest grandchild from taking arms and fight - and _that_ itself was a miracle because the King was more than mentally unstable and paid no interest in anything other but 'getting back what was rightfully his'. Frerin had been much too young still, barely even reached his teens yet. He had been a child still. He didn't have the skills, he didn't have the needed experience to join that battle. Yet, there he had been and Thorin had known of it. There he had been and there he had remained. The child who was lost near the side-boards, abandoned to fight the enemy with only few loyal dwarves by his side. The mere thought of it was sickening. It made Thorin sick.

Before getting into the death of the youngest sibling of Durin's royal family, first one would have to know of the fact that grown dwarves seldom shed tears. Homes could be lost, families ripped apart and death loom all around, and yet this stocky-build, short and hairy folk wouldn't necessarily feel any sort of physical urge to show their sorrow by leaking salty liquid from their eyes. Grief and heartache were often demonstrated by other means, both physically and mentally. Usually crying was something of a last resort thing to do, or then left completely for the children. Of course, this didn't mean that the adults were completely incapable of shedding tears nor that they understood any differently the actual need to cry. Neither did it mean that when shit started hitting the fan, they had no urges to throw huge emotional fits to solve the situation. No. It only meant they _chose_ not to do so. They were proud folk and couldn't bear the thought of showing this sort of a vulnerability to the world around them. Tears were a clear sign of weakness. Revealing weakness lead to dying. Crying meant giving up. Giving up was not in the dwarvish nature.

Thorin didn't cry when Erebor was lost nor when the elves betrayed them. He didn't shed tears for his grandfather whose head was cut off right in his sight, nor for his father who went after the said enemy and was never seen again after the battle of Azanulbizar. Thorin had lived through some pretty catastrophic moments. He had seen death face to face and walked through roads of blood and shit up to his knees, and he had lived on to tell those tales with dry eyes. But there was always a certain breaking point for everyone. A point that did the impossible. One that managed to slither like a slimy snake beyond that solid steel-wall that hid people's emotions only to create a huge emotional blast there. To cause chaos, panic and disorder. This point existed for everyone, no exceptions given, not even for royal dwarves.

Thorin found his own breaking point once his soldiers lead him through the masses of corpses at gates of Moria, to the dead cold body of his younger brother, one who was practically the baby of his family, still highly treasured and guarded. A baby that was dirty and bloodied and resting in an awkward position with his dark hair splattered all over the bloody ground. That was the point when time and place froze around Thorin. Nothing moved or made sound as the crown prince of Erebor stared at what had become of his younger sibling. His sword, as grime-coated and bloody as the rest of him, fell from his hands with a thud, breaking the silence surrounding him and making the moment real again.

Tears began to pour down Thorin's cheeks and jaw, heavy and hot on his dirt-matted skin as if the flow them could wash away the awful image of his precious younger brother lying in front of him in a puddle of his own blood. Lifeless Durin blue eyes were still open and staring at the ground in front of Thorin's feet. The freshly made King Under the Mountain felt a burn hotter than the dragon's fire in his chest as he collapsed next to his dead broken brother and cried and held him against himself, praying Mahal and all the Valar to have mercy and give him back his Frerin. For hours Thorin mourned, clutching to his brother like a child to his parents, pressing their foreheads together with a devastated need all while giving pleads for Mahal to give back his Frerin or to take him instead. For hours he clutched and wailed and begged, for so long he no longer had the strength to keep himself awake and no longer had a voice to speak. Then when all had been said and done, he closed his eyes and for the last time in his life fell unconscious with Frerin near him.

Mahal remained silent and unresponsive to his pleas. He took Frerin into his halls that day. Permanently away from Thorin and from the long happy lives they should have had if only the dragon had never come to take the Mountain from them. That day, guilt and the shame of failing to protect his brother burned a hole in Thorin's heart, leaving an open scar that still even to this day ached like freshly made. And it was a good thing it ached for he wanted it to hurt. Wanted to be in pain for the rest of his life, just like he deserved to. As a punishment for letting Frerin get killed. For letting down every single one of Durin's folk.

The ghosts of his past and all the darkness and misery and death he had seen haunted him in his dreams and nightmares almost nightly. He woke up in the middle of most nights, gasping for air and covered in cold sweat, with his heart racing like a madman inside his chest. 'Nightly panic attacks', Óin had told him when he had asked for a relief to these nightmares. 'These happen more than often with seasoned warriors, lad. Unfortunately no healing ointment can cure these wounds of mind.' Talking could help. Sharing your feelings could help. But Thorin didn't know how and to who he could share his dark thoughts. Instead he grew reluctant going to sleep at all and eventually allowed himself to have light rest for few hours each night. He preferred this rather than falling into a deep slumber that gave the chance for the dreams to terrorize him. But the lack of sleep he denied himself from put his body into a constant state of stress and it strained more than he ever could have imagined. Eventually that lead to new kind of problems. Serious problems. With an alarm, Thorin later realized that whatever evil he had managed to intentionally block from his dreams and nightmares, only followed him now when he was wide awake too.

The scary truth was, only short after Frerin had turned into stone, Thorin began to doubt his own sanity. He dared not to speak it out loud, not even to his closest companions, but inside he was deeply unnerved and feared what was happening to him. He feared he was going mad.

 _Because madness ran in his veins..._

For as good as he was to hide the distraught of his mind and the fucked up things he was sure to witness around him, yet sometimes… Sometimes he had to admit it to himself that he wasn't completely sure what was real and what was imaginary. Sometimes _,_ he was sure, _he was so sure_ , he could see unnerving things around him. Shadows that kept following him. Sounds of footsteps right behind him. Most unnerving were the hazy _faces_ smiling at him when he walked through big crowds, too far for him to reach and too in the middle of people for him to call. And yet, with wicked smiles they would beckon him to come to them, _come, come, come,_ to take their hands, to let them lead him. If he followed and tried to catch up with them, to close the distance and demand an explanation, they would only run away from him, easily slipping through the crowds with an echo of laughter following them and then disappear into thin air.

Also, there were times when, _he swore_ , he could hear familiar voices whispering into his ears. Softly and kindly at first, caressing his hearing and playing around with a child-like innocent that melted his heart with the strange familiarity it had. And just as he would let out a sigh of ease and relief, the tune took a rapid change, letting awful ears-hurting shrieks as if someone was dying, and then the words would turn cold and hard, like hisses of snakes and growls of beasts, accusing and demanding and blaming, cursing and abusing, telling him to confess all his sins and failures to them, ordering him to let go of his darkest thoughts, wanting to humiliate him, wishing pain and hurt to him, desiring for him to _suffer_ and _suffer_ and _suffer_. And suffer he did. In silence and alone. For who could he dare to speak of the things that went inside his head? Who would listen without thinking he was going crazy? There was an ongoing battle inside Thorin's mind, one that raged all along and tore him into pieces little by little without anyone knowing or seeing it in him. _Without anyone helping him._ Even Thorin himself was unsure who the opposite sides were and who he was meant to support, which one was his friend and which one his foe. It was a torment.

The inner war and the state of Thorin's mental health was a sad tragedy in itself, but the overall condition and health of his body was not doing much better. Aside from the disaster he had for eyeballs, his body was quite something to take in as well. Like all seasoned warriors who had seen their fair share of near death experiences, his body was a ripped canvas with countless scars. He had them with all colors and shapes, just like a bad painting of some sort, on his back, front, arms and legs, all those marks of hard training and battles and hardships. Some were smaller and lighter, others were bigger and deeper, while others… had a class of their own and just downright refused to heal completely. Now, Thorin wasn't much interested in the way he looked, never put much thought and effort in his appearance except for the overall tidiness and, of course, his hair and beard. He wasn't so vain to feel troubled over a few scars on his body, and truth to say, the main cause of most of his unevenly healed scars was he himself and the stubborn unwillingness he had for letting a healer to have a look of him. No, the scars didn't bother him with the way they looked, but what _did_ bother him, was that the burns he received from the dragon on the day Erebor was lost, at times, almost daily, those scars on his right side still pained him greatly. They ached. They burned. And demanded attention. As if his skin was still on fire and burning deeper and deeper into his flesh. It was more than an unpleasant issue to deal with but Thorin dealt with it, because that was what he did. He dealt with these scars on his outside and inside, as well as with shit just happening to him.

If there was something Thorin could rely on, it was the certainty that shit happened to him on regular basis. The main reason he was so bitter was because his life surely wasn't what he had thought it would have been. It hadn't been what it should have been. He should have had more. He knew it deep inside him. He should have been _more_ than an exiled dwarf prince. Everything inside him screamed that. He _wanted_ to be more. He wanted it so bad, that in those occasional times when he did decide to close his eyes and seek for the longed-for sleep, if his dreams weren't plagued by nightmares and horrible memories, he saw himself in the life he should have had. Living the royal life as the golden prince of Erebor. As the heir of his grandfather's throne and as the mighty King of the Lonely Mountain. And as a grandson of a dwarf King _without the gold-sickness_. As the eldest son of a father who _never_ _went missing_. As an older brother of _two_ loving siblings instead of one. And as an uncle surrounded by many dwarflings - strong nephews and beautiful nieces of various ages, with the familiarities of either Dís or Frerin.

And… if Thorin really lost his head in his thoughts, in the deepest and most secret part of his dreams, he dared to dream himself holding a baby dwarfling in his arms. A small precious treasure with hair black as the night and eyes pale blue and shining like the clearest sapphires under a torchlight. A blessing that lived and breathed and moved in his arms. Something of his own flesh and blood. Something that he had helped to create. Something of him. In this specific dream scenario, he held the sleeping babe close to his heart, smelling the scent of something of purely his, and felt a warm presence of someone right next to him, leaning into him, breathing into his ear, sharing the same love towards the small bundle of miracle that rested in his strong arms. He felt contented. He felt full. He was... _at peace_. And so full of tenderness and love.

But, if his nightmares left him breathless, twitching in pain and covered in cold-sweat on his bed, it was after these dreams that he truly felt like being suffocated. Like his heart was getting pierced through and slowly bleeding empty. He could feel it in his chest, his heart twisting and turning in its place. In agony and torment, tormenting him with the rough, primal need of wanting, and wanting, and _wanting._ So desperately yearning for something he knew very well he could never have. It made him jealous and bitter. So, so very bitter that even at times he disgusted himself with the amount of pettiness he felt for his poor little self. Because only pathetic people would sink so low to do that. Only self-centered people pitied themselves. And he sure as hell did his best to hide these ugly traits from the rest of the world. He hid so much of himself from others.

Because of this, some said Thorin had no capability of feeling kind emotions anymore. That he could only understand grim and dark feelings, only being able to hate and loath and, _and be so thoroughly bitter_. They whispered with hushed words behind his back, judged him even though they knew nothing of him. Called him by names. That he was dreary and a stone-heart. They said he was already turned into stone with the way he acted. They said that he wasn't alive anymore, but already cold and dead inside. That his body just hadn't yet caught the hint, not yet realized it should stop moving already. They said there was no other dwarf as grim as him. That even though he was greatly respected and looked up to, they still feared for the day he would have his Kingdom and the power to rule. They spoke of him in such way because they were scared of him and of the things he would do.

Thorin understood and could somewhat accept this. People were afraid of him even back in the days when the Mountain was still held by the Durin. It was the way he was born-, his father had long ago told him, -this royal trait he had inherited from his ancestors that made people fear and respect him. It wasn't necessarily anything personal against him, just the way things were, just the way his whole being screamed of importance and demanded people to stay put and get the fuck out of his way. People were afraid of him and Thorin had no intentions of changing that. It was good that they grew silent around him, that while his own folk supported him in his efforts, they also didn't dare to come too close to him. That way, they unintentionally gave him room to breathe. Thorin liked it that way. He wasn't interested in changing his image or to get the public to adore him. He didn't need to have a lot people in his inner circle, he already had the ones he wanted and trusted and that was all he required.

Stone-heart they said he was but as dark as Thorin might have been, he wasn't any crueler living being than the dwarf next to him. It was ridiculous even for him to hear that people actually thought of such things, that he actually wasn't able to feel nothing but hate and anger all the time. Ridiculous-, he had conversed with his old friend Balin many times, -for if his impassive face alone was the cause of such rumors, he would have liked to hear what had been said of his dear grandfather back in the days. The last King under the Lonely Mountain, whose impressively wide sneer was so legendarily characteristic to him that even Thorin himself had thought for many years it was permanently stuck on his face. Although well past 200 years, the dwarf stirred fear inside his enemies and friends likewise with only one simple glance, not even trying, and that itself was a feat to accomplish. He was at least twice as scary than what Thorin's father had been, making it impossible for Thorin himself to even try to catch up with him. In a way, he would have enjoyed to hear the stories people had of Thrór and Thráin. He really would have liked to hear the false gossips and mockery of them, like he heard of himself, just to have some peer support, to have _something_ , even something little, to connect himself to his perished family members. As silly as it was, he kind of was proud to bear the same frightening traits as his ancestors.

Yet still, unlike the public opinion, Thorin _could_ actually feel feelings just as well as anyone else. He was no stranger to them even though many wouldn't have guessed so with his stern face and unkind words. He could appreciate life and the little sparks of beauty in it. Of course he could appreciate it, and also feel the joy and affection it brought, even feel love. In his younger days, in the time before the dragon, he was actually very much open with the love he felt. He showed it to the person near him with easy-going smiles and deep laughter, and sometimes even with clear gestures of affection. Though, those were the days he was still naught but a child and knew only little of the real world. Today the softer side of him was tightly smothered and closed off from the public. Rarely would he feel so at ease to let it surface and when he would, it was only for his closest family and kin. For those he held important and who he trusted. For those he wanted to keep safe. For those he loved.

Thorin eyed the dwarves sitting in his table, not really listening what they were conversing about. He let his gaze travel from one member to another, carefully searching and memorizing the features of each and one of them. Soft blue eyes moved from Ori, the youngest and inexperienced and no doubt most treasured among them, to the oldest and wisest, his most trusted and loyal friend Balin. He saw twelve of them. Twelve-, he promised to himself, -who, once he had his throne, he would ensure to live like royals for the rest of their lives. Thorin would keep each and one of them close by his side when ruling. He would keep them well-fed, rich and respected among others, but most of all, _safe_ inside the Mountain. As soon as he was able, he would take care of them and show them the kind of loyalty they had given to him. For only they had come. Only they had chosen to be by his side.

The journey Thorin was about to lead was dangerous. Mad even. He knew the risks well. He hadn't spent countless restless nights pondering over it for nothing. He knew danger was ahead. Possibly even death. He knew. Would he loose these dwarves around him? Thorin swallowed with difficulty at the thought, letting his heavy eyes rest on the heads of his nephews _. 'So young still…'_ Too young to die. _'As had Frerin been.'_ The image of his teen-age brother lying on the dark ground surrounded by his own blood with an orc blade sticking through his torso flashed through Thorin's eyes. Would he now lose the dwarlings he had raised together with his sister as well?

' _I will not.'_ Thorin clenched his jaw, eyes still on Fili and Kili as he made another silent promise to himself. _'The line of Durin will not fall. There will be a son of my family to rule the Mountain once more. Dís will have someone to come back to.'_ Even if it meant the death of Thorin himself, he would see that at least one of the princes survived to take the crown, at least one of them would live on. The importance of their survival knew no limits to him, easily even overlooking few moral and sane lines. _That_ was the way he loved – selfish, overly rough and with a firm will of mind. Perhaps it was an unhealthy way to love indeed, but just as absolute and true. His love was fierce and unyielding, his care almost too pressing and obsessive. Thorin was a born head of the family, the caretaker, and once he had something he cherished, he sooner went to war than lost it. He would kill or be killed to protect what was his. And Fili and Kili had always been his. Always. They had been his ever since he had first laid his eyes on them as newborn babes.

It wasn't only his nephews but Thorin cared for his company too - this he had already acknowledged and accepted as a plain fact. Though he admitted, at first it had been hard to realize because before there had been only a few he had allowed himself to feel so protective of, and frankly, it scared him to think he was responsible of all their fates. He would lead and as loyal as these dwarves were, they would simply follow him, blindly, and with a trust so strong it was touching. For they knew too that they would either be victorious in the end, or then continue their journey to the halls of Mahal. It had been difficult for Thorin to accept this. To accept that these dwarves respected him so much that they were willing to die just to have the opportunity to follow him and help him with his goal. To have back the home they once had.

Thorin's eyes softened as he let his gaze travel around the table once more. Yes, no matter what the whispers were behind his back, he was not a stone-heart or dead inside. He cared for his company and would try his hardest to get them all alive and in one piece to the end of this adventure. He would give them the home they so desperately sought for. He would give them so much more than that. So, so much more, as soon as he was just able to.

The pale blue eyes of the dwarf leader found the backs of the two men-children that had given him one fierce headache pounding inside his skull - with only the short period of time he had known them. Just like that, the softness in his eyes hardened into a distasteful scowl and his mind turned sour as he watched them hunch their heads together a few tables away from the company, deep in a private conversation that only added Thorin's dislike of them.

After Thorin had ordered Balin to create a contract for the Dreamers, the human duo had agreed to it, and then quickly excused themselves, moving further away from the company to talk to each other in what seemed to be a hushed argument - one that managed to light Gandalf's eyes in a scary kind of amusement. Thorin didn't like all that secrecy in the air and he certainly didn't like the two strangers that were the cause of it all. He simply just didn't like them nor would he ever learn to. To him, the Dreamers would forever remain outsiders and strangers, and those unworthy of his attention or efforts. He would never like them. He would never trust them. He would never accept them into his company.

Thorin would never allow himself to care for outsiders. These children of men would always be _nothing_ to him.

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"This-," Meri gestured towards the dwarves and then to themselves, "-did _not_ go as planned. Not at all," the girl sighed out miserably and looked away from Aleksi with a defeated expression on her face. With the corner of her eye, she could see some of the dwarves stealing curious looks of her and Aleksi while discussing with each other in an obvious gossip-kind of way, but at that moment Meri felt too distracted with her own frustrations to take any care of what they might have been talking of. Probably nothing nice anyway so why bother herself.

"He was _way_ more hateful towards me than you! Unbelievable! He... he accepted you more easily! How come that's fair when first of all you were _god knows where,_ taking your own sweet time playing your stupid Casanova card on some poor defenseless girl, and only then, when it happened to suit your own self-centered ass, did you show up here! Much too late and with an attitude of a total prick! And it's _me_ who Thorin decides to pick on! Just-, **what**? Don't tell me, is this one of those bro-things between men that I just don't understand! 'Burden!' he says! _Burden,_ Aleksi! Stars! This is-, it's just ridiculous! I bet my ass it's all because my gender and size, am I right? It's all because my gender and size, isn't it!? There's nothing I can do to my gender and size, for fuck's sake!"

Aleksi, already having his own emotions in control (just like it was common for him to heat up in one second and calm down the next) let the girl rage on in front of him, her eyes wide and lit like two blue torches in the dim tavern as her hands flew wildly around to demonstrate how offended she felt. The blond man wanted nothing more than leave her complaining little ass behind him, walk back to that table full of dwarves he had dreamed for two long years and finally have a good long look of each of their faces now that he had his chance to do so. Maybe grab a few ales with them, share some stories, have a good laugh, but-, he sighed and prepared himself to deal with the little girl-bear in front of him. He had this cursed soft spot for Meri, always had had, and it bothered him to see her in such a state of mind when the cause of it wasn't he himself. If he left the girl there like this, it would spoil the rest of his night to know that he hadn't comforted her at a time when he was needed.

"Without a doubt it's all because of your gender and size, it always is. I mean, look at yourself, you're a ridiculous little thing," the man then answered without a beat and made a face to her before pulling the unamused girl into a one armed cheerful embrace, their backs turned at the company so that the sight of them couldn't distract his mind. "C'mon now, Baby Bear, you know better than to mind him. The dwarf's just old and grumpy and you just happened to stand out from the rest of us, that's all. You'll show just how much of a burden you'll be. You'll show him and that group of little henchmen, right?" The man nudged the girl playfully with his hip, seeking for a quirk of lips from her.

Aleksi, not that surprisingly, was one of those people who was naturally just really bad at dealing with heavy emotions - his own or anyone else's - and used his humor to escape those sort of situations. Life was much more easier and simpler for him when he didn't have to bother his head with sullen thoughts and deep unwanted feelings that tended to immediately flare up his anxiety and make a human ruin out of him. Smiles, on the other hand, were easy for him. Making a fool out of himself was easy for him. Playing and joking around was too damn easy for him. But talking about sad and heavy stuff… not so easy.

"Hey…" the man whined a little and nudged the girl more with his hip, "Cheer up now. Don't be like that. Your depressed face is pretty goddamn awful to look at. I hate to see how that frown twists your face like that. You look like a damn grim reaper, girl. Very much not appealing thing to see right now. The only thing worse would be if you were actually _crying_ right now. With your tears and snot running all over the place," the man actually shuddered at the thought, "That's a pretty bad sight for a simple man as me to behold, you know that."

Meri frowned even harder, wondering just what was the reason why she put up with the stupid man in the first place. She hadn't cried in ages and Aleksi should know that too. She wasn't about to do so now either. _As if_ she was about to cry just because the dwarf King didn't like her or the way that she looked. She already knew very well beforehand that he would be against having her and Aleksi with the company. She had had her time to prepare for this. She had had time to get used to the idea of someone sneering at her in such a way. She wouldn't cry. Or course not. _'But why does it still sting so much?'_

"Look, Meri," Aleksi groaned out once noticing how the silent moment seemed to grow longer and longer. He put both of his hands on her shoulders and trapped her to look at him alone, "If you didn't happen to notice, I wasn't exactly thrilled of him either, nor he of me. Our personalities are sure to collide with a bang. I can already see a huge-ass shit storm approaching us in the near future. It's only the matter of a time and a place when someone's going to explode in a rather nasty way. But that's still somewhere ahead, and meanwhile, we'll just have to remember where we stand right now. We finally got to meet these dwarves. They're here and that's what matters the most now, right? Wasn't that what we promised to each other? This crap is starting now and we're getting it done with, and then hopefully we'll finally be freed from this whole fucking nightmare that's been lasting these past few years. We _knew_ Thorin wouldn't approve us. It's no surprise really. Don't bother to get angry because of his silly little attempts to protest against Gandalf's will – he's just mad because things aren't going like he wanted and is unleashing his stupid little attitude on you because you're seemingly the easiest to pick on."

Meri pouted like a child, knowing Aleksi was telling the truth but still couldn't help but to feel like it was more unfair for her than him. "Yeah, and that's only because I'm _a woman_. What if I cut my hair and bind my tits, would _that_ make the needed difference? If only I had a dick in between my legs, then everything would suddenly be all alright, wouldn't it? Suddenly, there'd be less problems, right?"

Aleksi gasped out loud, a bit too dramatically than what was necessary, and shook the girl from her shoulders. "You want a dick in between-? _God no_! Let's keep you pretty and gorgeous and without a dick, just the way you are," he said in a disbelieve, giving he few pats on her head and then squinted his eyes at her slightly, "And fuck me girl, don't you dare to do anything to your appearances, you hear me? Don't even go thinking of anything alike. I'll not have you shave your hair or do anything crazy and reckless like that, just to please Thorin! Hell, if the dwarf doesn't appreciate to have a pretty, _womanly_ creature in his sights, then it's all _his_ problem, not yours, and for god's sake girl, you're going to leave your hair as it is, pretty and long, or else I'm really forced to do some drastic actions over the matter. I... don't know yet what those actions will be, but trust me girl, I'll figure it out if needed and-, and you're not gonna like it!"

Meri sighed, knowing the man was getting back to his normal playful and silly acting, and so turning impossible for her to talk to seriously. She leaned forward to place her forehead against Aleksi's chest to get some solid support with her inner struggles. "I just don't want him to think me as a burden. I'm not a burden. _I'm not_. And I want him to see that. As stupid as it sounds, I sincerely want him to like us. Is that too much to ask?"

Aleksi patted her back gently, not knowing what to say and the girl sank even deeper into his tunic and muttered something against the plain green fabric, her words muffled.

"Say again now?"

"I said," Meri spoke louder, turning her head so that he could hear her, "What took you so long? I saw the Ri-brothers in the stables before meeting up with Gandalf, and I think I already got a small heart attack back then. _And_ I almost pissed in my pants here, having to deal with all those dwarves alone," she cast her eyes on their feet and nudged his booth with her own, "Where the _hell_ were you? Why weren't you here where you were needed? I thought you were supposed to keep watch. You promised me you'd keep watch."

Aleksi felt a cold feeling of shame creeping down his neck, knowing he had let the girl down. But his mistake had been a small one and not caused much of a problem in the end, and because the girl normally forgave him rather easy, he hoped he could get her to forget about this whole incident quickly too. If he just put a bit of his playful banter into it.

"Huh! Always blaming me for everything. I'll let you know, I was actually trying to search for you _." 'If not a little late, that is…'_ "And you know what else, it wouldn't hurt you to at least _try_ and actually _smile_ every once in a while! It's no wonder the dwarves haven't warmed to you yet, you looking like a bloody butcher with that face." _'Just play the guilt card and she'll forget she's mad at me. Smooth as fuck.'_

"I _have_ been smiling, you jerk!" Meri exclaimed, her face still pressed against his tunic, "You've just not been around to see it!"

Aleksi grimaced slightly, knowing she was really upset because of his absence. Another way to approach the grumpy girl was needed then. Lucky for him, Meri was a sucker for his natural charms and to the way he talked sweet nothings.

"Ah, well, then I've seriously missed out much of this evening, haven't I?" he teased good-heartily and placed a short strand of her blond hair into the back of her ear, "Forgive this fool, would you now? You know how bad I feel about this all, especially now that I know you've been here with your best behavior and giving out your smiles to those stuck up dwarves, even though it must've been hard. Poor baby," he sighed and puckered out his bottom lip in a way he knew made him look like a wounded puppy, "Your smiles truly are the most beautiful thing on Middle Earth, I cannot even start to describe how much they brighten up my life every single day. These dwarves must all be blind, not realizing the gorgeousness that lies just in front of them!" he sighed out dramatically and captured the short girl in a crushing embrace, her face tightly against him - a little bit _too_ tightly.

"There, there, Meri-bear. I'm here now. I'm always here for you," he muttered with a calming tone, "You got nothing to worry about anymore, you know I'll take care of everything for now on. Just give me some time and I'll make those little men open their eyes and see what a beautiful, strong companion they've got for themselves for the journey. Soon they'll understand, I'll see to it. I make it happen for you. I'd do anything for you."

Meri muttered grumpily against him and tried to free herself from his unwelcome bear hug, only to make him tighten his hold, squeezing the air out of her. She choked and muttered some more and struggled even harder, but Aleksi merely just petted her head, which ridiculously reached only to his chest, and shushed her grumbles with his admiring pompous praises.

 _CLING-CLING!_

A sound of dishes shaking together behind them stole Aleksi's attention, and he glanced at the empty table behind them. His eyes widened as he saw a familiar barmaid quickly collecting the remaining dirty dishes from a deserted table, and not even giving him a glance before rushing off, carrying the full tray with her trembling hands. The girl had obviously witnessed the warm embrace and Aleksi's fond words, coming to an obvious conclusion.

" _Shiiiit…_!" Aleksi breathed out, pushing Meri away like she had suddenly burned him, making the girl stumble back and then immediately attack him with half-vicious punches and slaps. " _Shit!_ Meri, just-. Ouch! Ouch, stop it! Shit!" he cursed and tried to avoid Meri's bashing angry arms all while looking desperately after the long-lost barmaid to whom he had earlier given all his time and efforts to.

Meri gave him few more angry hits before calming herself down and straightening her bulky coat back to its place with a business-like face. She had successfully collected herself from her little temporary slip of depression. Slapping Aleksi always made her feel better.

" _Ai_ , man!" Aleksi choked a cry, his previous playful mood now long gone, "Meri, look what you did! Look what you just did there! Now she thinks that we're- _aaaahh_ _man_ …! You're such a cock blocker!" Aleksi groaned sadly and buried his face into his hands.

Meri just gave him a raised eyebrow, quickly putting the pieces together. She now knew who had kept Aleksi busy earlier. "What _I_ did? Bitch please _, you_ were the one suffocating me." She gave a quick glance at the disappearing barmaid and turned back to Aleksi with a frown on her face. " _Really,_ Aleksi? A barmaid _, tonight_? Must you, really?"

"This is entirely _your fault_ ," Aleksi emphasized, his face still buried into his hands, "And don't you 'really _'_ me, Meri. I didn't intend this to happen. As if I ever intend to. I was keeping a sharp watch at the bar for any signs of the company! So, maybe I _did_ order a drink while at it. And some dried meat. Then maybe another drink. But what else was I suppose to do while waiting here alone? Then, out of nowhere, she just appeared in front of me, with a full pint of ale and a smile of an angel. Let me tell you, I was speechless. Her hand kind of accidentally brushed against mine, and-well..." the man smirked, "Gracious, girl! I've never felt anything so _soft_ in my whole miserable life. Who knew a pearl like her could be found here, in the middle of god freaking nowhere? This was destined to happen, I'm telling you."

Meri rolled her blue eyes at the hopeless man in front of her. Why did she even bother to act surprised anymore? She really should stop leaving him alone and unsupervised in public places when it always ended up with him either running after some one-night flings or then getting into fights. Trust Aleksi to find himself a hookup on an evening as big as this.

"Uhhuh," Meri shook her head with an unhappy look, even though she was more than used to things ending up like this, "Sure. It's always either 'Never seen a girl with such _long_ eyelashes!' or 'Never had one with an actual _beauty mole_!' or 'Never kissed lips _so full_!'." She couldn't help but to allow a mocking smirk on her lips when thinking all the times they had had this very same conversation. How many times had Aleksi's brown eyes lit up and breath hitched after spotting his new lady-enchantment for the night? How many times had she seen him turn into Don Juan and swoon a girl after a girl with his irresistible charms? How many times had she had to play the part of a wing man to make the boy happy and satisfied? Meri had lost the count already. She had lost her hope on him as well.

"And then there's my absolute favorite: 'Never been with one who could _suck_ and _talk_ at the same time!'." The girl sighed and massaged her temples, ignoring Aleksi's dreamy-eyed reply of "Hey, really now _, that_ _was_ a real talent!", and continued, "Seriously Aleksi, you need to pull your shit together man. I've let you have your fun for these last years, I've been cool about it and not gotten into your way, even if I've had my objections. But for this one night _, stars_ , for this one night, can't you keep it in your pants? Is it really that hard for you? This is important, Aleksi, it really is, and I'm starting to think that perhaps you don't get this the same way I do. If you allow yourself to get distracted so easily, then maybe this whole thing means nothing to you. Maybe you just don't care as much as-,"

"Now wait a minute here! Don't you start talking about _caring_ , Meri," Aleksi cut in with a serious face, getting a little worked up, "After everything we've been through, I can't believe you're really doubting if I _care_. Or much this _means_ to me. I'm _all in_ for this, with every bit of me! There's not much else inside my head except this and you know that too," he muttered, tapping the side of his head, "You're not the only one who dreams, girl, nor the only one who keeps having a nightmare after a nightmare. Don't you forget that, even if it's been you lately who has seen them more. I've had my share of it all too! I'm no fuck-wit. I know _exactly_ how important this is, for them and for us. So you can just quit with that horseshit and stop trying to guilt me into your will. I already apologized for being late so what more do you want from me? Are you seriously going to be a complete bitch to me for god knows how long, just because I like to hold onto whatever little sparks of enjoyment I can find in this hellhole?"

Meri took a step back from the man and gazed at him with hard eyes. She pursed her lips together and crossed her arms in front of her, taking a protective stance from Aleksi and his flaring temper. To anyone else, they might have looked like they were having a steadily growing argument, one with harsh words and hidden (or direct) insults. But to them, this was just a way to talk to each other when a little steam needed to be let out. Things were said as they were, bluntly and with a strong mind, going straight to the point without any unnecessary extra flourishes. Meri and Aleksi had long ago passed the point of playing nice because of polite reasons. These days they could say whatever they wanted, just as they thought of it, without having to care about the feelings of the other. In a way, there was a perfect harmony in between them – they could show the best of themselves, as well as the worst, and neither one would judge the other. Sometimes they didn't even need the words, they just knew what the other was thinking, as if they had known each other for their whole lives and not just few years.

"I'm not using any sort of guilt cards here, that's _your_ way of doing things, not mine. I'm simply saying what worries me, because truthfully you just seem to be waltzing around the place without the slightest care of the world. But whatever then! Do what you want, that's what you always do anyways. I don't have the energy to start arguing with you, and _being a complete bitch_ , when you're clearly not going to give a damn of what I'd have to say. Just-, just _try to_ watch your mouth and remember your manners from now on, at least until these dwarves tolerate us enough to _not to_ attack us whenever you're being a rude asshole to them," she said while tilting up her chin and promptly turning away from the man, "And if you would now stop wasting my time, I have some drinks to buy and dwarves to meet. Just-, just-, _mmmrrr_ ," she let out a girly growl of frustration, "-would you forget about the barmaids for one night!"

And with that she was off, marching toward the bar to get herself a drink and leaving a slightly gaping Aleksi behind her.

" _Watch your mouth…!_ _Forget about the_ _barmaids…!"_ he repeated to himself in a high pitched girly tone, "I only came here to make you feel better! How is it, that every time I try to help you, something unpleasant happens to _me_?" called after Meri, stomping a little on his feet when he was ignored, "And just how can I go and ' _forget about the barmaid'_ , when she has stolen my whole goddamn mind here?! Oi! Don't you run away from me girl when I speak to you! Meri! Get your little ass back here, we're not done talking!"

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"Thorin, are you sure of this?" Balin asked with a low voice from the dwarf next to him, trying to keep the rest of the company out of the conversation, "Can they be trusted? I know they already know too much but I can't help but to feel that something is wrong here… Wrong with _them_. Could it truly be that Mahal…," he trailed off, not knowing how to finish that sentence.

Thorin scoffed and answered with an equally hushed tone, "Of course they cannot be trusted, don't be blind my friend. We will not be played by some freakish man-children telling grand tales of dream-seeing and Valar and... We will not trust them. Not before we have our proof. We will keep our heads and be ready at any time, with our eyes sharp and axes all set when things start taking a nasty turn. Let these Dreamers think what they want. Let them believe they can fool us. Only time will tell what it is that they are after."

Balin hummed with a thought. "Oh, I know how bad things can go and my eyes are sharp enough for the both of us, you needn't to worry of that. But what concerns me is that the wizard seems so sure. There is no lie in his eyes Thorin. I don't even think his kind are allowed to deceive people this way. There was nothing but honesty and sincere wonder in his words. It makes me think… Of all sorts of possibilities."

"And eventually one of those possibilities will be the truth," Thorin said darkly, "Only I think once that truth is finally out, this all will end in blood and death."

Balin frowned at such words and couldn't shake off the bad feeling he had. "What a situation we've stumbled into..."

"WELL I'D SAY!" Dori suddenly exclaimed, having heard the whole thing and not being able to stay out of it anymore, "How we suddenly find ourselves in this sort of situation is well beyond me but _I_ find this all very unsettling and uncomfortable to begin with and would very much like to know just what in the name of Durin have we gotten ourselves into? What is happening? Would someone kindly elaborate me just _why_ are we trusting these men-folk and most importantly why are we allowing them to join us in this sacred quest? I fail to see the logic here."

"Logic? _Logic_?" Gloin joined the conversation, "You think logic has any place in this? Logic is far from this place, my friend. Can't you see it, we've became as simple-minded as all these men folk we have surrounding us here, and _that_ is the only explanation to all this! I warned you lot! It was a bad decision to come here. A bad, bad decision. Once we rode inside this horrid man-village, all the common sense in us just drizzeled off-, _puff, gone_! -into thin air, turning us into these same wood-headed idiots. At this rate, I wouldn't be surprised if the night ended up in an even bigger disaster than this! Maybe an orc raid to spice things up, what say you lads? No-, actually… Come to think of it, I'd really fancy to kick some orc arse at the moment."

"Oh boohoo. Stop with yer whinings 'n grow some balls already, lads," Bofur spoke up with a good-humored snicker, "Ye're an unbelievable bunch! Here we got ourselves couple of seers to help us in our merry way, 'n all ye care to do is cry like wee dwarflings over the matter! Pains me ears off, if anything. Where's yer curiosity? Where's yer thirst of adventure? Le'mme tell ye, if anything, these tale-tellers should be rising quite few good laughs from us on the long road!"

If he had expected a positive response from the company around him, he was very wrong. Instead, the hat-headed dwarf earned a firm slap at the back of his head from his cousin next to him, followed by a lecture in Khuzdul that ended with another slap on Bofur's arm. And then another one at the back of his head again.

"I'd listen to Bifur now, lad. Knows what he's sayin'," Dwalin muttered under his breath, his dark eyes glaring at the humans under his heavy brows, "Don't go takin' any interest in those two. Nothin' good ever came from gettin' friendly with these tall folk. Elves, men… Every bugger's the same. All them backstabbers and traitors. Keep yer distance from these Dreamers and sleep one eye open for now on, ye never know what'll happen in the darkest hours of the night with those two lurkin' around our camp."

Gandal cleared his throat and looked them all with irritated eyes, clearly very disappointed. "That'll be enough of suspicious talk for the night, thank you Master Dwalin. No need to feed the fire of distrust among this party, when that flame is already burning so hot. I don't see any reason to place fault onto blameless shoulders. They didn't make this happen, other forces did. They didn't insist to be part of the company, I did. If you don't agree with the choices I have made, well, that is unfortunate, and I'm sorry but you will just have to learn how to accept and move on."

Dwalin bit back his tongue and slowly moved his dark eyes to Thorin, exchanging looks with him. _'The wizard's barkin' out orders as if he owned this whole damned company. It's_ _ **ye**_ _I follow. Yer word I listen to. Not his!'_

But Thorin gave him a gesture to listen what Gandalf was saying and so Dwalin sighed out hot air through his nose and clenched his jaw with a temper.

"Aye," Dwalin finally grunted out as an answer to the wizard, though he remained looking at his friend, "But don't mean I have to _like_ it…" he grumbled out and crossed his big arms in front of him, huffing out like his pride was wounded.

Gandalf eyed the way Dwalin's jaw ticked in aggravation. He suddenly felt the strongest need to point out a certain thought. "I also hope that any sort of unpleasant _accidents_ that just might befall on Aleksi or Meri during our long journey together can be avoided and stopped in time. As you said, you never know what will happen in the darkest hours of the night. No one wants to wake up one morning with an axe buried in their backs, do they?"

Dwalin shot an offended look to Gandalf. _'Dwarves have no need to run around stabbin' people while they're sleepin' and helpless, we've got all the means to do that when they're good and standin' and fightin' back! And as if I'd sink so low to raise my axes against little girls, no matter what race!'_ But then suddenly his frown turned up a tad, creating a mischievous look on his face. His eyes sparkled in a scary sort of delight that made Gandalf not so pleased to notice. _'While I don't go fightin' little girls, that man, however…'_

"Ayee," Dwalin let out a low chuckle and leaned back on his chair with an oddly satisfied look on his face, "No one likes accidents," he granted and ended the conversation with a finishing nod and a smirk that fought back all that he was saying. _'Though, if it's trainin' and fully intentional, all is fair. All is fair.'_

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"-and listen, I'm not even kidding right now, I think it's the way that she can't even look me into my eyes longer than two fucking seconds that makes my man ego burst with pride and fill me with the need of taking and dominating. I swear it's like she's awakening some sort of a primitive animal in me, and that beast lashes around inside me and demands to make her surrender to me and then fill her with desire and pleasure. I'm a goner Meri. I'm a fucking helpless case. I need to have her. I'm not even kidding. I seriously have to have a taste of her. It's like I'm drunk - and I've only had two mugs of ale tonight-,"

"Shut. Up. Already!" Meri hissed to the blabbering man beside her at the bar counter. Aleksi just wouldn't stop talking about his stupid little crush on the barmaid who had mysteriously disappeared from the saloon for a while now. "I couldn't care less of your silly conquest games, so just bugger off and leave me to buy my drink in all peace! And _stars_ , where's that barmaid when she's needed!"

"Well! I bet she's locked herself into some dark room to cry her eyes out because she thinks that she can't have me now that she saw you clinging onto me like some pathetic love-sick school girl! Thanks a lot Meri. You ruined my chances. I hope you're happy now," Aleksi grumbled out very much displeased and then sighed out longingly, "I should be there comforting her. Holding her tightly in my arms and whispering soft words to her ear. Stroking her back and hair and press her tear-stained face against my shoulder. Let her tremble in my hold and clutch onto me. I should be there right next to her, giving her strength to get over her sadness. Oh shit-," the man hissed and then sucked in a desperate breath, "-all _the things_ I really should do to her after that…."

Meri glanced at him with unimpressed eyes and wondered how her life had turned out to be like this. Surely she didn't deserve whatever karma's revenge this was. She was always a good girl. Yes she had her difficulties in life just like most people, but in general she liked to think that she had turned out to be a nice girl. One who listened what her mama said and one who deeply loved and cherished the little family she had. She cared for her closest ones. She always did as she was told and rarely caused any major scenes. She went to school like a dutiful student. She never stole anything or bullied anyone, never had fights which she regretted later on. She never tried any strong drugs and was only a half-alcoholic after turning eighteen. She graduated on time _and_ with good papers, got a job which she didn't completely hate, and always paid her goddamn taxes. She sorted her trash, sometimes took her old neighbor's even older cat Mrs. Fatty Catty to walks, hoped for world peace and even sent out little prayers from time to time. Once she even donated blood. No completely rotten person would ever do that, right? So why was she punished like this? She was always a good class B citizen, no better or worse than any other basic Joe on the street! She had built a nice basis for her life and had a good little thing going on. She had plans for her future. And a plant to water back at her place! And now… Now. Now she was playing a hero in a fairytale land, trying to save couple damsel-dwarves in distress. _With man-whore as her sidekick_. Meri slowly turned her head back towards the bar and silently stared into nothing, her eyes so empty it was sad. _Her life_ was sad. Her mama would not approve.

' _Sometimes in life, you might feel weak, dearie._ ' Meri closed her eyes and heard her mama's words, still clearly remembering what her voice sounded like. The sound flowed in the air gently at first but finishing with a soft female baritone. Her mama's words were always clear and well articulated, yet still smooth like an invisible caress to her hearing, tucking her mind into a warm safe blanket with its life-long familiarity. ' _Sometimes, you might feel like you just cannot go on anymore. That you've taken one too many bitch slaps on the face and you're scared of getting even more hurt should you continue doing your own thing. You might feel like a failure. You might want to give up.'_ Meri knew the feeling so well. She had always been so insecure when her mama was always so strong and stable, standing on her ground with her own two feet. Her Mama Bear. God, she missed her. _'But you won't, dearie. You won't give up. You'll never give up. Because that is when you remember that you don't have the time for that shit when you have things to do and places to be and a lot of motherfuckers to prove wrong. Giving up isn't an option. Neither is education under my rooftop. So you have exactly five minutes to get your lazy-ass up that bed and go grab your breakfast and get ready for school or I swear I'll come up there and drag you all the way to your classes by your bra straps if I must!'_

"Quite lost in your thoughts, are you, dear girl?"

Meri jumped a little and let out an alarmed yelp, whipping her head to look at the owner of the voice that had managed to creep behind to spook her.

"Gandalf!" the girl protested and held her chest, "Don't scare me like that! Gosh, you almost gave me a heart attack! Don't do this kind of things to me! I'm sensitive."

The wizard just smiled and said; "My apologies, Meri. The scare was not intended." So he said, though he didn't look sorry at all.

"Gandalf, my man!" Aleksi welcomed with a cheer and offered his hand with one grand gesture, "We had no chance for proper greetings yet! It's been too long since we last saw, eh old chap? Over a year or so?"

Gandalf looked at the outstretched hand with a humored expression, leaving it hanging there. "A year is a short time for an _old chap_ like me, I feel like it was only yesterday that you last bit your farewells."

Aleksi frowned and extended his hand even further. "You're supposed to shake it, man. Don't tell me your old age has started to mess around with your memory as well? Got any weight loss? Fragile bones? You do look a little pale and dusty. Sort of _grey_. Should we start being concerned here?"

Gandalf pursed his lips and looked offended. He continued ignoring the pointed hand. "The state of my health is hardly the foremost thing you should concern yourself with. I dare to say I'm quite capable taking care of myself for many many years to come still."

Aleksi frowned harder and stepped closer to the wizard, shoving his hand almost to his lap. "I wouldn't push it, man. Old people die all the time. To sickness. To overexertion. To coldness. Usually they've already passed on before we youngsters even realize something's wrong."

Gandalf's eyes narrowed and chin raised. "As do _little men_. Often because of small mistakes. Bad decisions. By steel and violence. But most just die simply because they are unintelligent fools."

Aleksi's eyebrows rose high on his forehead, he hadn't missed the insult. He took another step closer, so close his nose almost touched the older man's beard. Brown eyes stared into pale blue for one silent moment before Aleksi stubbornly pushed his hand against Gandalf's robes. "Shake it. Or I'll never let you have your personal space again."

Gandalf merely had the time to cock up one eyebrow before Meri yanked the blond man back by his hair. Aleksi let out a pained cry and stumbled backwards, the girl still gripping his hair. "Back off you moron, you're being so rude and childish! Why'd you go and bully him like that?"

"Ai, stop it, you devil of a woman!" Aleksi whined and wiggled himself out of Meri's hold, "Jesus Christ, my hair! What were you trying to do? Pull it off in chunks? Fuck me, just stay away from me, you little monster."

Meri pulled a face at him and turned back to Gandalf. "I'm so sorry Gandalf. I'm so lost on what to do with him. He's like an unruly dog I just can't get to behave. Don't mind him and his stupid cheek, you're definitely not an old man. I think you're looking very handsome and in good spirits! No better way to start a long journey."

Gandalf nodded to the compliment and smiled to the girl. "No harm done, I know very well Aleksi meant no ill."

"See there!" Aleksi laughed and grinned toothily, latching himself onto Meri's shoulders, "Gandalf knows me! He knows I'm just playing around with him! What a bro!"

Meri shook the man off her shoulders and gave him a little glare. " _If only_ you'd stop playing around and be serious every once in a while. Maybe find some common sense in you. And come on time to scheduled meetings… That's all I'm asking for."

Aleksi huffed out. "Uhhuh, but that's awfully lot to ask of me… Besides, it's not like I'm the only one being late from gatherings. Gandalf does that all the time and I see no one giving him hard time because of it."

Gandalf stared at the man with a calm facade. "Why... A wizard is never late, nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he means to."

Aleksi and Meri froze to look at the wizard with dumbfounded expressions on their faces. Aleksi's mouth hanged open while Meri's eyes stared wide.

"What?" Gandalf then asked, a little bothered of their unresponsiveness.

"Oh, oh nothing," Meri coughed out an answer and scratched her neck, "It's nothing _." 'Except just one fucking huge déjà vu moment, that's all.'_

"Anyways, I guess I should go ahead and apologize to you too Gandalf," Aleksi sighed and looked a little uncomfortable with the task, "For being late and all… You know it wasn't intentional. I just own a very one-tracked mind that is easily distracted with pretty little things walking by. What can I say? The simplicity in me plays a big part in my charm. I couldn't survive long without it. Though I'm not completely sure if it left a good first impression on the company."

Gandalf gave him a sly look. "I believe you were trying to say that 'your game was kind of weak, my friend'?"

Aleksi chuckled while Meri looked at the wizard with a stunned expression.

"You've been learning! I'm impressed!" the man winked.

"Please stop teaching people these things, Aleksi," Meri muttered, slightly choked up, "It's unnatural, and weird, and it's upsetting me greatly."

"Then suck it up, girl," was Aleksi's answer, "I'll take my amusement where I can find it. Who knows, maybe one day we'll come across with someone who'll just casually greet me with a 'Yo bro!' and a swift fistbump, then takes one look at you and says 'Dude, what's wrong with the lil doll? Girl seriously looks like she needs to take her chill pill.' and then take his leave with one carefree wave of a hand and a 'Later dude.' Wouldn't that be fucking great, or what? Like a dream come true."

Meri's stared at the man, her eye twitching a little. Wordlessly she turned back to the bar, waiting for the long-lost barmaid so she could finally have her seriously needed drink. "I don't have the patience to deal with you right now. Gandalf, please, do tell why you've come to talk to us while I ignore that tiresome being behind me."

Gandalf stroked his beard and watched with mirth as the odd couple spoke to each other. They still stuck out like a sore thumb from the common people around them. It was so strange for him. Even after so long he could still sense the lingering touch of Aulë's magic in them, flowing inside them, pulsing in their blood and living in their cells. These two odd-birds, freaks even, who only had little place in the world they had been pushed into, had been chosen by a higher being to carry out this puzzling mission. Aulë had without a doubt seen something great and special in them. Seen something big and promising to have picked them out of all the others. There must have been a reason. Just like Gandalf had had his reasons to choose Bilbo.

"Yes," the wizard mused out slowly, recalling why he had come there in the first place, "Ah, yes, yes now I remember. Now that you are both here, it's perhaps for the best to have a little talk before you go and engage new conversations with the company. Mainly you Aleksi, for Meri I have already spoken to."

Aleksi's eyes narrowed slightly. "Come to think of it, I think a little talk is in order. Just exactly when were you going to pass us the news about the whole smithing thing? You think it was clever of you to leave out these few itchy pitchy details from us? You think it was irrelevant for us to know that someone's been messing around with the inner parts of us? Fuck me, Gandalf if there's some disgusting alien parasite living inside my body that I've had no idea of, do tell me now so that I can go kill myself right away with my own sword and all. Fuck the dwarves and fuck the Mountain in that case. I'll cancel this whole thing. Can you look me in the eyes and tell me I haven't had my soul sucked out by some godly being during the process of coming here? Seriously man, should I be concerned?"

 _BANG!_

Out of nowhere, Meri banged her fists to the bar counter, startling Aleksi and Gandalf who then watched with confusion as the girl suddenly started jumping and hooping in joy; "Praise the Lord, the barmaid is finally here! Hey Lady, yes you there! Drinks! Drinks for all of us!"

Immediately Aleksi's eyebrows rose and his eyes went to search for the said maid, Gandalf being long forgotten from his mind. With a crushing disappointment, he saw another barmaid coming to serve Meri, this one with dark hair and hazel eyes that found his own with a quickly rousing interest in them _. 'Pretty thing. But not my soft-handed maid.'_ Aleksi gave her a polite nod and a charming smile but then turned his eyes from her, letting Meri do the ordering.

"So," the man cleared his throat with a little sheepish grin, knowing Gandalf had caught him eyeing the barmaid, "Guess we can sort out the deal with the living parasite a little later, yes? What was it you wanted to talk about? I'm all ears, good man."

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 _EDITED 2019_

 _"Sometimes I feel like giving up. Then I remember I have a lot of motherfuckers to prove wrong." -All those Queens and Kings out there_

 _Thorin is one big mess. I overdid the beginning so much I think I should be ashamed. I read an interesting theory about dwarves having a horrible eyesight and was immediately turned on by it. What are your thoughts on it?_

 _By the way, keep an eye on Frerin and everything that's mentioned of him. His death is a sad and confusing one, and I plan to drop little hints of it every once in a while._

 _Thanks to MissCallaLilly and dragonegyptianblue for their reviews, it's great to see people liking my story! As to when Meri's going to tear Thorin a new one, well, it's going to be a while until we get to that point of frustration. She's a complicated little thing (as most women are) and it might take her a while to get comfortable enough around Thorin to act completely like herself._

 _Tell me what's on your mind, give me feedback, ask me questions. I'm more than happy to reply._

 _Stay positive and motivated, the spring is coming. Drink with responsibility and remember to use protection, I know what the thought of summer does to you all. You animals._

 _With cheers and all that jazz,_

 _Miss Always Wrong._


	5. Chapter 4

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Chapter four - Of dimples and a wingman

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 _-Two weeks since the submerge-_

 _"No!" Aleksi cried outraged while barging into the breakfast room, a slightly mad glint in his brown eyes as he searched the room, pointing one trembling finger at the culprit he was looking for, "No, Gandalf! No! This is enough, this is fucking enough! I'm over and done for, you can cut me out of this shit, because honestly this night was the last straw I swear to God! I'm not having any more of this!"_

 _It was hardly even dawn yet. Birds had awoken outside and the early morning sun peeked through the small wooden windows with its shy gentle rays, casting soft light inside the room. Sitting in the small wooden breakfast table in the middle of the room, Gandalf blinked slowly, the hand that held his steaming teacup stopping midway to his mouth as he took in the sight of the heavily breathing mess of a man at the doorway. At the table next to him, Meri had also frozen in the middle of taking a bite of her crusted bread and Gandalf didn't even have to glance at her to know there was an annoyed frown on her tired-worn face. Indeed, it was much too early for this sort of drama to be unleashed._

 _"Pardon me, young man?"_

 _Aleksi sucked in a long shaking breath and ran his hand through his already disheveled blond hair before slamming it against the doorframe next to him with a bam that shook the extra layer of dust from the wood above him._

 _"This stops here and now!" the man exclaimed with a growl, "I'm sick and tired of all this already, so just take them, please, take them the fuck out of my head! I want them gone! I want them permanently gone from my mind and body and from my goddamn dreams! I don't want to have another glimpse of any fucking dying little people in my sights again! **I want them out of my life, do you understand**!"_

 _Gandalf's eyebrows rose high on his wrinkled forehead. With a certain practiced calmness, he first placed his teacup back on the table, then wiped some none-existing dust from his sleeves and folded his hands on his lap, taking his own sweet time before giving his attention back to the man._

 _"Dear boy, I'm at a loss. However, please, now that you have successfully woken us all to this fine morning, do come further in and help yourself to break your fast with Miss Meri and I. Mayhap that will ease your ill mood a bit? No? Oh well. Then do tell, what seems to be the problem here?"_

 _"The problem?" Aleksi laughed sarcastically, his face twisted in an ugly sneer, "'What is the problem?', the wizard asks me! What seems to be the problem? Are you **kidding me**? The problem is that I've had zero fucking hours of sleep since I've found myself tossed into this shithole! **That's** the problem! ZERO, Gandalf, and I'm this full with having to suffer through it! Do you even understand what happens to a man when he doesn't get to sleep!? Do you understand what kind of a beast will claw out of me if things continue like this?! I'LL TURN INTO A GODDAMN MONSTER, MAN! Get those fucking ass dreams out of me! I want my sleep! I need my sleep! Give me my sleep back!"_

 _Meri rubbed her face, twisting and pulling the skin rather hard while muttering under her breath with a rough sounding language. She was tired as well and didn't need this unnecessary drama Aleksi was bringing into her breakfast table. Her own dreams from last night were enough of distress for that morning and she really didn't have the mental resources to handle Aleksi's too at that moment. Couldn't the man see that everyone else around him were exhausted as well, not only him?_

 _Gandalf blinked again at the blond man with an infuriatingly innocent expression on his face. "And_ _what_ _exactly do you want me to do?"_

 _Aleksi gave him a frustrated look. "Well, you're a wizard, aren't you? Take them away! Cast a spell or make a potion or some shit like that! I don't care! I just want to sleep without any more of these dreams!"_

 _Meri bit into her bread and grumbled out; "Loud idiot." 'Stop being an asshole. Mama would whoop your ass for screaming out like a spoiled little brat this early in the morning.'_

 _Gandalf's lips thinned in displeasure and a sparkle of annoyance flashed through his baby blue eyes. "I'm not that sort of a wizard to go casting spells to shape your mind! Nor one to meddle around with your free will! What a dangerous thing to do to a person! Talking about plain irresponsible of me. Who knows what could happen to you! You could turn into a half-wit of a man for all I know! We wouldn't want that now, would we? No, no, I won't go throwing spells at you just to spare you from a few nightmares, Mister Aleksi."_

 _"A few-, a few nightmares!?" Aleksi choked out unbelieving before continuing with rage, " **God!** You think it's just few bad dreams we're talking about here, huh?! One or two bad dreams with some hair-legged spiders and wiggling little Lowly Worms, huh? You got no idea, man! No fucking clue what goes around inside my head during the nights! And yesterday-, yesterday night was the last fucking one, do you hear me! I'm not taking this bullshit any longer!"_

 _There was a sharp look in Gandalf's eyes, a clear warning sign for the man to watch his mouth and start calming down or things would turn ugly. But in his anger-filled stage, Aleksi saw nothing but a stubborn old wizard who refused to acknowledge the seriousness of his problems and offer his helping hand. With a ragged breath and the sound of his heart thundering in his ears, the man stomped on his feet and continued to unleash his raged fit like an over grown child. "Fuck you and your 'few nightmares', man, you don't know a rat's ass what's going on in here! I thought you wanted to help us out, Gandalf! I thought you were here to give us some fucking support! WHERE'S MY GODDAMNED SUPPORT WHEN I'M ASKING FOR IT?!"_

 _Meri snapped something along like; "Aleksi, that's enough!" but the man was still too deep in his own emotions to hear her out. With a blame burning hot in his gaze and a panic creeping into his tone he went on; " **I thought I was going to fucking die!** Do you even understand what it's like to feel this-, this-, mind numbing **panic** twist your lungs and smother your heart all night long? To feel like a trapped animal in a goddamn raging forest fire? I was trapped in that god-forsaken Mountain the whole night, Gandalf, with no way out! I was trapped there surrounded by black smoke, with thousands of people screaming and crying deeper in the halls and everything rumbling and shaking around me and-, and with the echo of a maniac **laughter** all over the place…!"_

 _Aleksi sucked in yet another trembling breath before composing himself again and focusing his glare back at Gandalf like if it was all his fault. "THERE WAS A BIG ASS PYROMANIC MONSTER-LIZARD LAUGHING MINDLESSLY INSIDE THAT MISERABLE PILE OF ROCKS WHILE I TRIED TO HURRY THE FUCK UP AND FIND A WAY OUT OF THERE, ONLY TO STUMBLE ONTO BUNCH OF DEAD PEOPLE AT MY FEET! BURNT FUCKING DEAD CORPSES, MAN! HUNDRERS OF THEM! EVERYWHERE! AS FAR AS I COULD SEE! SMOKING **BODIES** BURNING INTO BLACK CRUST, FOR FUCKS SAKE! THAT'S GODDAMN TRAUMATISING, YOU HEAR WHAT I'M SAYING? IT'S SICK! IT'S FUCKING SICKENING!"_

 _" **Aleksi**!" Meri snapped out, banging her little fists on the table and jumping on her feet to get the man's attention better, "That's enough already!"_

 _Aleksi startled at the high-pitched voice and spared the girl a quick glance, his eyes softening a tad before he turned back to Gandalf who suddenly looked very grim and burdened._

 _"AND THEN-! Then I find myself waking up by me clawing onto my own skin, swimming in my sweat and my heart racing a marathon inside my chest – **and still with the disgusting smell of people burning in my nose**! I was fucking gagging and retching at the side of my bed for hours after that! Gandalf, even you got to admit that's not normal, that's fucking messed up! All I see is flying monsters and armies of dead little people whenever I close my eyes to sleep! There's nothing but fire and blood and misery surrounding me, it's too much for me…! I can't take it, man! I need to have something to dull myself with! I'll go nuts, my mental health won't last long! I need some pills, man, anything! Please just give me something to get rid of those images!"_

 _With a stern face, Gandalf raised his hand to stop the man going on any longer, finally claiming his turn to speak._

 _"That is quite enough already," the wizard told him with a soft tone, still as a command, "I've heard more than enough of this, young man, and you are threatening to pass a dangerous line here. Must we really go through with all that long chitchat again? Have I not emphasized the fatality of sharing these dreams with me more than enough by now? Surely you must know the distress I'm already in, knowing that only one or two wrong words from either one of you to wrong ears would be enough for means to end up with horrendous results. Fortunately, this time you spoke nothing that I hadn't already known of, nothing that should pose as a threat for the future. **This time.** From here on, I must urge you to pay more caution on what you're about to say, especially during these emotional outbursts of yours. Self-control, Mister Aleksi. That is what you ought to learn and use, and with a great haste, before you blurt out something you'll come to regret deeply. Please take heed of my advice, I do not give it with a light heart."_

 _Aleksi was left momentarily speechless, clenching his jaw and pursing his lips in a frustrated way. He was still angry, maybe less than before, but still angry and still feeling like everyone was out there only to make his life more miserable. He felt unjust, beaten and completely helpless to the things that were happening around him and to him. Childishly he wanted nothing more than to have a huge tantrum, to break everything around him and shout until his throat went raw. He didn't want this! He. Did not. Want. This! Why wasn't anyone listening?_

 _But besides the anger, he was tired too. So, so tired of all that had happened and of the constant battle to survive. Tired of the never-ending struggle of trashing himself forward in the knee-high amount of shit he was in. He was completely drained out of the energy to fight against Gandalf. The lack of sleep, few weeks forth of it, made him ready to give up the war and just drop dead right there where he was standing. His legs were already shaking, his knees ready buckle under his weight. All he wanted was to give up. But these goddamned people wouldn't let him._

 _"Would you please just help me?" he begged the wizard through gritting teeth, "I don't want to see them anymore. I never wanted to. I just want to sleep, Gandalf. Please, please, please, that's all I'm asking for. I'm so fucking tired. All the time. I don't want to be like this. It's turning me into a monster. I need sleep."_

 _Even Meri felt bad for the man, knowing it was harder for him than to her to go through… whatever it was that they were going through there. She knew Aleksi took the dreams differently than she did. He tried struggling so hard against them, fighting against everything they tried to tell him and while doing so, making the dreams much more sinister and frightening for him to see. The man was so strained physically and mentally. He looked like a mess. Like a walking corpse with his heavy eyebags and the pale complexion that screamed of sickness and distress. Meri knew she herself didn't exactly look like a princess at that moment, but the man was definitely in a worse shape than her._

 _"Please Gandalf," Meri spoke her mind, surprising the two men in the room when turning to the wizard too, "Even a temporary solution? Can't you think of something?"_

 _Wizard pursed his lips slightly, briefly thinking about it. "Forgive me my friends, but I'm not one to put my hands into this," he apologized, earning a frustrated groan from Aleksi and a sympathetic look from Meri, "You two were brought here with an ability of seeing dreams unlike any other, and so shall you two remain here, witnessing those dreams. It's not that I wish to see the pain it causes to you Aleksi, not at all, it's simply just not my place to interfere in Aulë's plans. This is his handwork, part of a bigger picture he has in mind and right now all I can do is to give you advice with the best ability I can. The rest is up to you. I cannot help you cheat your way out of this. I am sorry."_

 _Aleksi buried his face into his hands and let out a muffled laughter, unbelieving his luck. The man banged his head hard against the door frame and pressed it against its hard wood with a force, relishing in the pain it brought. Pain was, after all, what kept him alive. A clear sign that he was still on and going. Pain was somewhat his old friend, something he could surely handle. Pain he could survive. Just not the mental one. Never that one._

 _"That's it then, huh?" he asked with a sick tone, "I'm done for. Fucked. No way I'm going to stay sane like this for long. And I'd rather die than submit myself to a life of insanity."_

 _Gandalf sighed out, suppressing the need to slap the boy across the face and stop this ridiculous theater at once. "Well, certainly your dramatic acts won't help you at all. All you need is to learn how to live along with the dreams. How come that is so hard for you to understand? There is no need trying to run and hide from these visions like a scared little boy. All this useless struggling and fighting is for nothing, for you cannot escape what Aulë has given. And what is for certain, you cannot refuse or outwit him. Which leaves you with one reasonable choice – accept and walk the path he has created for you. Won't you just have a look at Meri here and see where that leads. She has accepted her gift and look how much easier her life is. There is a huge difference in between you two."_

 _"Oh really, Gandalf?" Aleksi gave out a weak laugh, "Funny thing then that after all my retching and puking last night, all I heard for the rest of the night were her sobs and cries from across the room! You really think she has it any easier than I? Well, let me tell you the surprise of your lifetime; you're wrong and she's a huge fucking mess, just like me! But unlike me, she's a goddamn **woman** and has probably been raised from a little baby to look pretty and suffer silently when shit's happening to her. **I** don't know how to do that and I don't have what it takes to endure this! I'm going to die! I bet we'll be walking through the same fucking massacre from last night thousands times to come still, along with other equally sick-minded bullshit that your man 'Aulee' decides to gift us with, and I'm not strong enough to go through with them all! I'm not meant to take this shit!"_

 _"No, it's **you** who's wrong here Aleksi," Meri butted in with a serious face, getting a little worked out when hearing herself getting pulled into this shit. She didn't understand why Aleksi had to snitch about her nightly crying to Gandalf, as if it wasn't embarrassing enough to hear that he had witnessed it himself, "It's not about being strong enough! It was never about who is the strongest one or who could take the most! These dreams-, they aren't just some by chance picked up nightmares! They're not some random horrors! Their purpose wasn't to torment us to death, can't you see? There's a clear path with them. A-, a message of some sort…"_

 _Gandalf looked intrigued for he too had long ago come to this conclusion on his own. With a quick raised hand, he shushed Aleksi from a comeback the boy was obviously trying to give to Meri, and then gave his full unwavering attention to the girl. "Go on, Meri," he encouraged, leaning slightly to her with a twinkle in his eyes, "What do you think they are for then, dear girl? What do you think Aulë is trying to say to you two?"_

 _Meri looked bothered and uncertain. She kept glancing between Aleksi and Gandalf, clearly uncomfortable with the attention. Saying her thoughts out loud made something twist unpleasantly in her stomach and the way Gandalf showed excitement over what she had just said didn't help the situation. Aleksi too, though still angry and upset, seemed taken aback and curious of her words._

 _"Uh," she gulped, taking a brief moment to collect her thoughts, "Uh. Well. It's quite obvious, isn't it after all? There's too many similarities in every single dream to mistake them for casual nightmares. The dwarves, for one-," she scrunched her face at this, still learning to call the little people from her dreams actual real life dwarves, "-and the huge Mountain… The battles, the hardships…-" 'The books and movies back at home… Stars, I should've paid more attention to them when I still had the chance.' "-…It's a tale, isn't it? A long, long sad story with death and loss and betrayal and heartbreak. Of family and survival…" Meri took a small pause to think about it, "Perhaps… He wants us to know this tale by experiencing it ourselves? To know certain details so we could build even a bigger picture? Maybe he wants us to see what he has seen? To feel what he has?"_

 _..._

 _"And to do something he could not?"_

 _Meri's eyes met Gandalf's and at that moment the girl knew what she was saying was the truth. The wizard's pale blue eyes, usually shining with mirth and mischief, were now slightly down-cast. They were so sad and apologetic that the girl felt herself getting even more uncomfortable having such a pitiful look from him._

 _Pity. God, how it stung her. Any child with a single parent knew that look. That look she often received from other adults who knew of her family background and immediately thought she was someone less fortunate, a poor little thing who had to suffer from the mistakes of others. 'Just because I never knew my father… Just because I never had anyone but my mama in my life.' People showed pity because they thought they had it better than her - or that they **were** better than her. Pity was for sad cases and she despised to have such a gaze focused on her. She didn't want people to feel sorry for her, not even Gandalf. Her mama hadn't raised her to be anyone's sob story._

 _"He wants us to know and feel the whole background story, to create our own opinion out of everything… and make a decision based on that," the girl finished quickly, not wanting to prolong the moment._

 _"What. Fucking. Decision? What are you talking about?" Aleksi asked with a heavy frown on his face, anticipating the worst._

 _Meri eyed him for a while, debating whether she had the guts to say what had been on her mind for so long. It felt as if saying out loud the words made them painfully real - something she couldn't take back. Didn't Aleksi already know the truth himself?_

 _"He wants the Mountain back to his dwarves," the girl said, giving a hesitating glance to Gandalf to see if he wanted to oppose hearing any of this. He nodded as encouragement, and so Meri went on, "He wants his sons of Durin back to their rightful home, back to the wealth and fortune that was taken from them. And, most of all, he wants them there **safe** and **alive**." 'He wants to save the Durins from their fate.'_

 _Aleksi looked shocked and in pain, as if someone had just surprised him with a quick punch to the face. "Say what? Safe and alive? Are we talking about those self-destructive little men who're always running at enemies at least twice their size? Those little hairy trolls that keep on dying at every possible turn? Those that go around poking airplane-sized dragons with their little sticks of axes? His royal ass and highness high up above us, that kidnapper and-, and-, sick-minded twisted little bastard who thinks he can just go around messing around with other realms and ruining innocent people's lives, actually wants to keep **those** people safe and alive?"_

 _Meri gave a slow nod that made the man curse loudly._

 _"Well, fuck me, I'm so outta here," Aleksi groaned and threw his hands in the air, "All this bother and hellish nightmare for the sake of a group of stupid suicidal midgets! What a fucking waste! I'm getting my mind terrorized here for nothing! Doesn't the man (Aulë) realize how pointless this all is? Fucking up our lives and throwing our asses into a fairytale-land to keep a bunch of death-sentenced little buggers away from a danger they practically chase after? DOESN'T HE KNOW THOSE SHORT ASSHOLES ARE LIKE MAGNETS TO DANGER AND DEATH? Everywhere they go they keep on getting into middle of shitty situations and end up dying all over the place! That Aulee dude wants us to keep **those** people alive and kicking? FUCK ME, WHAT A BULLSHIT MERI. I DEMAND TO GET RELEASED FROM THESE SCREWED UP PLANS BEFORE I REALLY GET MYSELF KILLED!"_

 _"Yes, it would seem," Gandalf mused out to himself, stroking his beard while thinking of Meri's words and ignoring the loud man at the doorway, "The time is nearly here… For the line of Durin to step forward from hiding, to reclaim the Lonely Mountain. Well, I suppose I can understand the need to do that, after all the dragon is causing an unnecessary headache and concern just by sitting inside the Mountain and waiting. Troublesome times lie ahead…"_

 _Meri looked at the wizard with anticipating eyes, goosebumps pricking her arms. Something was starting here, the blond girl knew it. This was the beginning of something big and she was given the chance to take a part of it. To perhaps make a difference. But what was her part? What was the role she was supposed to take? Was it even possible to meddle with things that were destined to happen, **that were written in a goddamn book too?** Most of all, did she even dare to go changing the future from the way it was meant to be? It was dangerous. She could get herself killed. She could get a load of innocent people killed. She could destroy EVERYTHING. And she didn't even know where to begin with._

 _But somewhere deep inside her, there was this… urge - a desperate need that grew all the time stronger and stronger, spreading its roots deeper into her core and staying there, fixing its grip to last. Meri didn't know when it had taken a seed, nor when she had first recognized such a stubborn feeling in the first place. But she knew it was there, as real as her beating heart. It was there and she couldn't get rid of it. And. What scared her the most, was that it felt as natural and easy as breathing for her, almost as if it was born with her, as if it had always been there just waiting for the right time to stir and wake up. Like an instinct of an animal she felt it fiercely – that need to tend. And to protect._

 _"Oh my god," Meri gasped out, feeling her heart race at the sudden realization, her eyes immediately shooting to Aleksi in pure horror, "Oh my god! That bastard! That scheming son of a bitch!"_

 _What she finally saw clear as day was the meaning of all the dreams Aulë had given them. The real, brilliantly genius reason behind them. The big scheme and master plan. The trap he had set up for them. The one that Meri had already accidentally and very much unintentionally tumbled into…_

 _"I can't believe his guts! How dare he! **How dare he**!" the girl voiced out offended, feeling rather manipulated and used all of the sudden, "Oh, my, god! He plans to make us actually grow **attached** to his little people! He wants us to care for them in the same way he does!"_

 _For it wasn't because of the usual nightmares that had Meri cry her heart out last night. It wasn't because of the death and fear and pain she usually saw in her dreams. The reason for her tears were nothing of that sort. What she dreamed last night, for the first time in long forever, was something so warm and beautiful and full of pure joy and love, that it overwhelmed her senses. It filled her with lightness and bliss. It relaxed her muscles and healed all the sores from her body and numbed her mind in a way it was easy to get hooked into that feeling. She bathed in the affection that pulsed around her, soaked in the devotion and tenderness that filled so many pair of Durin-blue eyes she saw while sleeping. She cried, almost wailed like a little child, because she had never witnessed something so beautiful. Never in her life had she felt so blessed and happy. She would have never imagined how much pleasure it gave to her to see the long raven-locked dwarf from her dreams- - the one surrounded with endless oppression and torment - his usually grim and sullen appearance completely gone and replaced with… with love and gentleness. And with soft protective touches and a fond embrace, one with full of care and affection._

 _Meri felt it all too. She couldn't help but to. It was as if she never even had the chance to say otherwise. Like a ghost, she had stood there, unseen and unheard among a small group of dwarves in a cramped little room, and from her front row seat, she witnessed as Fíli, first son of Víli and Dís, of the line of Durin by his mother's side, and the new prince of Erebor, was birthed into the world with the sound of his first wails filling the room. Needless to say, the whole experience left her speechless, completely in a state of emotional wreck and with a new kind of fire starting inside her. She was lost from the moment she caught the sight of Thorin's eyes softening as he with trembling hands reached for the little bundle in Oin's hands, accepted it into his arms, and then, gently pressed his forehead against the baby's head, welcoming his little nephew into his family and into his protection. Moments after, Thorin's deep whispers in Khuzdul rumbled around the room, calming Fíli's wails and lulling him into a soundless sleep, and Meri knew she was in some serious shit. There was nothing she could do to stop it from happening. Just like that she was doomed to love that little dwarf baby too. Unconditionally._

 _"That clever bastard is tricking us into loving those dwarves! He plans on making us feel enough for them to want to save them by our own will!"_

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Aleksi and Gandalf had much to talk about. As much as Meri enjoyed being in the wizard's company again, she felt a little bit of a wall rose just standing there as a third wheel listening the two men talk. But taking her leave and going back to the dwarves sent an uncomfortable feeling at the pit of her stomach. She knew it was ridiculous, yet the whole bunch of them made her feel uneasy and restless. And very much self-conscious of the fact that she was the only female among them. It was a silly thing. She had nothing to feel alarmed of. Dwarves in general weren't known of laying their hands on women and she was raised better than to feel hesitant or uncertain when dealing with headstrong men. Still, _she couldn't help herself_. Most of them were grown ass males with some seriously intimidating frowning faces _and_ with a relentless will to push her away. They didn't want her with them and they surely let that show. They didn't like her, nor did they think she deserved their kindness. She was a stranger.

Meri knew this and could even understand why they acted like that. They were mistrustful and stubborn folk. They had suffered in the past, been wronged and mistreated by many. Discriminated. Betrayed. Forsaken. They knew what injustice meant. They had felt what it was to be rejected, to be outcast. They knew they could only rely on their own - everyone else would only try to find a way to use them. Meri wasn't a dwarf and so she didn't belong.

She _would_ belong. One day she would, she just had to fight her way to get to that day. Meri wouldn't allow them to drive her away. They might hate her now, but she was bound to them. She would force them to like her whether they wanted or not. Just like Mahal had forced her too to care of them. _'Look what you've done to me. Look what you've done to my emotional intelligence, you sick bastard. All my values, all my morals and sense of right and wrong are fucked up because of you. I hope you're happy now. You've made me an ugly picture of yourself.'_ Perhaps she was taking things a bit too much to herself, but she didn't like to lose. Yes, the dwarves were headstrong folk, but, she could be stubborn too. Two could play that game.

Meri sniffed, making her mind. She took her drink, left her two companions at the bar and began navigating her way back to the dark corner occupied by the company of hardy dwarves. Clearly conscious of the heavy stares on her figure, the girl summoned a smile on her face. It was a tense one but still pretty enough to fool anyone who wouldn't look beneath the surface. There was a stiffness on her shoulders, one she too tried to hide while approaching the group. A tingling intuition in her told that if she gave out any clear sign of the amount of nervousness she felt, she would only be further labeled as someone lesser than them. _'They would mark me as a child, or worse, as a woman._ _ **Have**_ _marked me already if anything Thorin said is to go by. A weak fragile 'go to the kitchen' kind of a woman. Bloody unbelievable. Mama would throw a fit if she knew. She'd go berserk and start slapping some dwarves.'_

Fortunately, Thorin himself wasn't in the table with the other dwarves anymore. Neither were Balin or Dwalin. This trio had moved to another table to have a private hushed conversation - the topic wasn't hard for Meri to guess once she caught their glances sent her way. _'These goddamn dwarves talk shit behind backs like some hardcore high school girls.'_ With a faked easiness the girl ignored the other (clearly VIP) table, took her earlier seat in between Nori and Bilbo and gave a little salute to the dwarves around her with her mug of sweet apple cider.

"Cheers," she said to them, shot a quick wink to Bilbo next to her and made the hobbit squirm on his seat before downing a generous gulp of the sweet golden nectar from her mug. _'Oh yes, this makes everything seem much better now. Alcohol always makes me smile.'_

Her satisfied grin was met with frowns.

"Lass, I doubt you have the years to be drinking anything stronger than juice of fruits and berries," Gloin voiced out for the rest of them, casually busying himself with a chunk of cheese in his hands, seemingly not even caring about the whole thing, yet the way his eyes lingered on Meri's wooden mug could have told a different story to anyone who knew the red-head any better.

Meri's eyebrow cocked up, not sure if she was being chastened or insulted or what.

"Mahal knows, who could ever tell of these men-folk anyway? They all seem like youngsters to me. Like hairless over-grown dwarlings. Reckless and ugly to look at, some with even worse temper than the Stiffbeards in the East. The lass could be seven summers of age, or then forty, and we would never know," Dori muttered to his own mug, exchanging long looks with Gloin who seemed to agree with amusement in his eyes.

Meri felt her right eye twitch, sure now that she was being picked at. Were they really trying bully her away?

"Don't pull off your beards lads, there's no ale in the lass' mug, no matter what her age. Only that sugary shock their woman folk like drinking, and that's hardly any stronger than watered wine," the dwarf next to Meri chuckled while peering at the insides of her mug, making the girl look at him with narrowed eyes.

Her gaze gave a little once over on Nori's figure.

Meri had already met Nori in the stables earlier that night before even having her first glimpse of Gandalf's grey robes. The middle brother of the Ri-family was a sly looking fellow with a very peculiar choice of hair-do. With hair pulled back and split in three equally large sections that were separated with tight braids and added with the three braids that held his beard, his head looked like one huge chestnut colored star that had a sizable nose poking through the middle of it and with two light brown eyes with the spark of cunning cleverness, his gaze jumping all around his surroundings in a constant search of something. Over them were two bushy eyebrows, curious sight as well for they too were neatly braided and then extended into the braids in his hair.

Unlike his older brother Dori, Nori wasn't built to be a warrior. He was actually one of the leanest of the bunch. In a firm shape and with that dwarvish kind of power in his limbs, but still definitely one of the thinnest of the company. He wasn't very tall, but neither was he the shortest, and his funny hairstyle gave out the illusion of few extra inches. Otherwise, his physical appearances were slightly plain compared to the others. Yet they served him well, for they allowed him to easily blend into the crowd and quickly disappear to the background, just like a shadow, unnoticed and unrecognized. An ability of which he certainly took a full advantage of, Meri had no doubt.

The girl gave the dwarf a painfully slow blink, pointing out how unamused she was with the whole conversation.

"This, good dwarf, is _not_ a sugary shock," Meri grumbled against her mug like a child, "It's sweet and tasty, and does its job almost as well as your ale, only without me having to pull sour faces after every horrible gulp."

It was Nori's turn to cock up his eyebrows. "Watered wine then!" he exclaimed with a stubborn tone, "If it's not strong enough to burn when going down, it's simply just not worth the coin."

Meri heard snickers around the table and she puckered her lips at the star-headed dwarf, smelling the challenge in the air.

"Well, if you insist buying my next drink, Master Nori, you are more than free to choose the sort yourself of course, but meanwhile when I'm spending my own coins on my own drinks, I think it's justified that I get to pick whatever the bugger I want from the bar."

The snickers stopped and Meri resisted the smug smile creeping onto her face. _'Thought I'd shy away from a little bickering? Sir, you're going to know the real me soon and I don't think you're ready for that quite yet.'_

The Durin brothers nudged each other with surprised smiles and Kili was the one to speak; "Suppose you want to be careful there, Master Nori, otherwise you'll soon notice yourself paying the rest of her night."

Like bullets Meri's eyes shot onto the young dwarf, catching his surprised gaze at the same and making him flustered with the amount of attention he suddenly had from her.

Kili was a young dwarf in his middle teens and only few years younger than his brother Fili. Brothers or not, he couldn't be any different from his golden-haired sibling in body and mind. Blessed with the handsome looks that ran in the Durin's family, he had more of that classic appearance of a Durin than his brother did, with his dark hair, sharp and serious, almost gloomy-like features and tall(ish) frame. The only thing missing from the iconic Durin look were the piercing pale blue eyes that both his uncle and brother had. Kili's own were deep brown, like two orbs of melted dark chocolate. Rich, soft and lulling, and oh so easy trap to fall into. They made his dark rugged looks even more masculine, even though the boy was only a child still. His young age showed not only in his short locks and stubble of a beard, but also in the childish mischief planted on his face and the way his lips were constantly on a playful smirk-of-a-smile as his mind worked on with new tricks and pranks and plans that would grant him the attention he wanted. He was completely a boy still. Unexperienced and open-hearted, not yet fully ready to take on the responsibility his inheritance brought to him or even aware of the darkness growing all around him. Meri felt concerned for him. For the dear wouldn't get to be a child much longer.

Meri nodded at him, a little smile on her face as she noticed Kili's big ears getting red _. 'Does that too run in the family?'_ "Oh yes, young Kili is right, Master Nori. By the end of the night you'd find your pockets quite the amount lighter and me quite the way more… jolly. I never pass a free drink. Even to suggest such an idea tends to make me sour."

"I can vouch for that," Aleksi's playful voice came from behind Meri and the human man moved a chair for himself in between the girl and Bilbo, "The girl loves her cider, alright, ain't nothing coming in between those two. Drinks it like fish. Never seen someone so small pour down so many mugs in one night and stay up longer than me. You know, there was this one time, I think it was one of the very first times we were at a tavern together, I actually got a bit worried. Because, man, she was like a little sponge with her drinks. Tugging them down faster than I could keep up with, and as the perfect gentleman I am, of course I tried calming her down a bit. Saying take it easy now with the alcohol pretty girl, you don't wanna end up poor and drunk and swaggering all around the place like a first class drunkard. But you know… Well, it didn't end up too good for me. And I've never tried again."

Meri rolled her eyes, not missing the quirk of lips Kili had. "Liar. Gentlemen, don't go believing a word this man says, his imagination runs faster than any other part in his head. I don't remember such a story."

Aleksi gave her a little wink. "That's because you were drunk beyond belief, darling. I don't expect you to remember much."

"As I said – a _liar_. Don't start spreading false rumors of me, I'm not an alcoholic and got no problem with my drinking," Meri grumbled out and took another sip from her mug to smother the sudden urge to slap the man.

Gandalf took this as his chance to walk by the table and flick Aleksi at the back of his head. "Manners, my boy. Remember your manners," he said and without further ado, continued his way to the table where Thorin and the In-brothers were.

Aleksi let out a choked sound and rubbed his head, annoyed. Meri was close enough to make out the curses he let out under his breath, especially the mutters about where Gandalf could go and stick his manners to. The girl couldn't help but to feel a rush of sisterly affection. She smiled, pleased to have Gandalf around them again, mainly to help to keep Aleksi in line. The girl surely tried hard to cope with him, she really did, but sometimes it felt almost impossible to get anything pass Aleksi's thick head. _Gandalf_ however. He knew how to handle the stupid man. He knew exactly how to get Aleksi to listen. The wizard had always had that invisible power over Aleksi, always had that respect Meri didn't have from him. Gandalf did him good, Meri knew, and his company was something both of them had greatly missed.

The conversation died like that and multiple dwarves left at once to get a refill, though the humans thought it was more like a mass escape from their presence. The ones that remained did their very best ignoring the two new faces.

Surprisingly Bilbo turned out to be an eager fellow to have a conversation with. He pretty much latched onto the first person who gave him the listening ear or showed some curiosity towards him and the opinions he had. It was almost a bit _too easy_ for Aleksi who only started the thing with short introductions in mind. Afterwards the man didn't even have to try to keep the conversation going. He hardly needed but to use the regular ' _Uhhuh_ 's and ' _Ah_ 's and odd questions here and there to keep Bilbo talking.

He talked about familiar things, things that were everyday life for himself, things he was proud of as a hobbit. Considering that Aleksi was a complete stranger, Bilbo talked quite openly to him, giving plenty of personal information too and things that even though were not that dangerous to reveal, made Aleksi uncomfortable with the thought of careless sharing, even more so because that was the one exact thing he could never do with anyone else than Meri. But Bilbo was a creature of peace and ease, and as innocent as he was, he had no idea how grave it was to expose your soul so easily to a complete stranger. He simply just liked to talk, _yearned to talk_ now that someone was listening him, and the only thing he knew to talk about was his own life.

Despite the slight uneasiness Bilbo's chatter gave to him, Aleksi didn't really mind that much playing a bit Dr. Phil and hear the bro out. Though, it was a little uncharacteristic of him to act like a nice guy and he felt weird feigning interest in whatever the hobbit had to say, he simply didn't have the heart to make the little gnome stop blabbering either. For fifteen minutes Aleksi sat still on his seat, lazily resting his head on the palm of his hand and keeping his attention on Bilbo as the hobbit fumed about his greedy cousin Lobelia Sackville-Baggings ("-a toad-faced harpy, let me tell you!") whose only goal in life was to outlive Bilbo so that once he finally died she could rightfully inherit the whole Bag End estate, along with all the furniture he owned as well as Bilbo's precious garden and, what more, his valuable silverware too ("-not one single little teaspoon shall be missing when I come back! She'll touch none with her eel of fingers, not while I'm still alive and breathing!"). After that, Aleksi changed his position, drank the rest of his ale and listened for another ten minutes as Bilbo listed off all the reasons why Lobelia could simply just bugger off.

Bilbo was a curious little thing indeed. Polite and discreet and yet so easily fascinated by the simplest new things around him, something that in turn amused Aleksi and served as a nice entertainment to pass time with. Bilbo was technically older than he, both in hobbit and human years, and yet, even in Aleksi's immature mind, at times it felt like he was the older one. Bilbo was a little bit too... _unburdened_. A little bit too innocent for his age. It was something refreshing to see after witnessing so much depression Arda had shown Aleksi. However, what humored the man even more was how unbelievably easy Bilbo was to tease around and make flustered. It was quickly developing one of his favorite pastime to make Bilbo feel awkward. It was like a treat handed over on a silver plate. And Aleksi loved easy prey.

"And, ah, I hope you don't mind me asking, this might be a little too straightforward indeed, but I have a feeling you wouldn't mind. For how long have you two- _hmm…_ how did men-folk do their courting again…? Been… _engaged_ with each other?" Bilbo asked suddenly, blinking his big doe eyes at the human man and making him almost choke in his ale.

Aleksi hadn't expected that sort of a question. He coughed roughly before turning his teary eyes towards the concerned looking hobbit, he himself wearing an amused look on his face.

"S'cuse me but, _engaged?_ Me and Meri? _Me_ and _this girl_ over here? Now that's the joke of the year!" he snickered and elbowed hard the girl at his other side who splashed some of her cider due the jolt and growled out an angry _"_ Ai! Watch it!" back to him.

"Meri-! Meri-bear did you hear, this is hilarious! Bilbo-,"

"It's ' _Master Baggings'_ Mister Ek," Bilbo corrected him quickly.

"- _Bilbo_ here thinks that we're _together_! Together in the way like **together** together!" Aleksi laughed out and earned couple of snickers from the girl too.

Bilbo fast realized his mistake with a flushed face.

"Ah! Oh dear me! Oh bugger! Pardon me and my hasty assumptions Miss Karhu, I didn't mean to voice out any sort of wrong ideas here. It simply seemed like you two were close and this just somehow misled me thinking there was more in to it. Oh dear. Oh dear me, my deepest apologies once more. If it's not a courtship, then perhaps you're of same family then?" the hobbit decided to address his apology and question to Meri instead of Aleksi.

Meri shared a humorous look with Aleksi, her blue eyes dancing in laughter. "In a relationship with this dog here? I think I have slightly better taste in men than-, than this _creature_ next to me." She earned a playful smack in the back of her head from Aleksi. "And no, we don't share the same blood either. Me and him travel together only because the circumstances _force_ us to. But personally, I think I got the lesser half of the bargain here."

"Hey now, that's just mean!" Aleksi quirked his eyebrows at the girl. "At least you could insult me while I'm not here to hear. That's what people with actual manners do, so I've heard."

"Ah, I see now," Bilbo nodded at Meri with oddly relieved expression, "I must confess, I was already getting slightly troubled over the thought of Mister Ek openly showing his attention to-, to, err, other women while already in a courtship with you. I-, I know men-folk don't always follow the traditional ways of courting and it's really none of my concern but-, but… Well, what I mean to say is that this certainly cleared the air a bit."

Meri gave the hobbit a funny look. "I don't really think the word 'courting' belongs in this man's vocabulary. You know, he would flirt with a horse if it were to show him some similar kind of attention back."

"I-, _what?_ I would not!" Aleksi huffed like a child and then pouted against his pint of ale, "Alright, alright, I guess I deserved that after the earlier teasing. Are we even now? Could we please stop making fun of me already, or are you still hungry for more? Wanna go through more details of my love life?"

Bilbo wasn't sure if it was fine to smile or not. These two seemed to have an effortless and easy-going relationship with each other, and his own hobbit nature wanted to pull him back from venturing any further into such subjects. Of course in Shire, it was a real joy and a grand reason to celebrate when two hobbits announced their intentions for each other and decided to join their lives as one. But having multiple affairs or even to talk about it, on the other hand, was not acceptable. It was sort of a taboo and extremely heavily frowned upon in public, even among the male hobbits and especially with the older folk who had their own daughters to watch and keep away from that sort of reckless behavior. Even if you were charmed by new pretty faces, you simply couldn't just go hopping from one girl hobbit to another, collecting kisses and other forms of affection without getting your reputation butchered rather fast. And without a respectable reputation, you had close to nothing in Hobbiton.

"Don't bother your head with it, Master Baggings," Meri said as if sensing his uneasiness, "Aleksi may be a free spirit and a lady charmer but he means no harm to anyone, least to any female."

Aleksi gave the girl a roguish grin and shrugged lazily, "What can I say? I am a gentle, romantic soul."

That being said, a familiar brunet barmaid passed their table to serve another, and Aleksi's eyes were immediately glued on her person. Meri gave Bilbo a silent meaningful look and sipped her apple cider while muttering about the impossibility of men urges.

"Ah. Now, would look at that," Aleksi cleared his throat and peered quickly into his ale pint, "Seems like I'm suddenly out of ale. Got to do something to fix that. Be right back."

Meri saluted him with her own mug, already knowing there was no other way for this night to go, even if it didn't sit well for her. "Go get her, tiger. And don't forget to get me a refill while you're at it."

Bilbo just looked at the girl with wide - and oddly little betrayed - eyes. "Go-, _go get her_? Mister Ek, I really don't think this is-,"

"Later Bilbo," Aleksi stopped him and grinned while getting up, "Later."

Bilbo was left with his jaw open to look at the back of the man who made his way towards the bar, a swagger in his steps and a hand combing through his hair. The flustered hobbit turned to Meri, looking for an explanation. The girl merely shrugged at him.

"I'll repeat; a free spirit and a lady charmer. You'll soon come to realize Master Baggings, that Aleksi does this thing called 'whatever he wants', and sadly, there's really nothing that can stop him from doing it."

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"We have a situation," Aleksi sighed out while dropping back onto his seat. Everyone else with the exception of the Ur-family were back at the table, but just like before, they ignored the humans. Aleksi too gave them no mind, for his own troubles were enough for that moment.

The girl squinted her eyes at him annoyed. "Do you mind? We were in the middle of a nice chat with Master Baggings here."

Bilbo blinked and remained quiet. Meri spoke the truth, they were interrupted from their conversation and he too felt a tingle of irritation because of it. For once, he was actually beginning to enjoy someone's company and that hadn't happened in the longest time, very rarely among his own as well. It seemed he and Meri got along surprisingly well, certainly better than with anyone he had recently met (that would be the party of dwarves barging in through his front door several days ago). He wouldn't have minded stealing Meri for himself a little while longer.

"Oh? But I come bearing gifts," Aleksi simply said and passed a mug to her.

"Dear brother of mine!" Meri's exclaimed and greedily scooped the drink, "What is it that burdens your mind so? What's this situation I hear of? Open your heart to me."

Bilbo was left hanging in the background. He was slightly offended.

"This is horrible," Aleksi sighed out again miserably, "Baby Bear, it's just so bad. I feel like someone has wronged me."

Meri made a gesture for him to go on. "Talk to me."

Aleksi chewed his lip for a second before answering. "The barmaid-, it's getting ridiculous. She's completely avoiding me. Avoiding looking at me, answering me, walking near me… She even got the other girl to serve me, I swear she did. And what can I do? I can't go chasing her around and making her even more uncomfortable, can I now? She'll think I'm trying to harass her and stuff. And I don't want her to get scared of me, don't want her to think I'm a bad man. Man… This got wrong so fast. It's horrible, Meri-bear. All I wanted was to clear out the misunderstanding she had, _the_ _one that was all your fault in the first place by the way!_ But she's not letting me get near her. I think she's a real shy doll, that girl. Don't want to get herself into trouble, or meddle with the wrong kind of men. Certainly nothing wrong with that, but it's not _me_ who she should be careful about. I'd be no trouble for her. I'd do her no wrong. I'd only adore her, Meri. I'd worship the ground she walks on, you know I would. But she won't let me."

"Hang on," Meri put her hand up, "Please, oh please, tell me you weren't chasing that poor girl against her will all this time? What are you now, a _stalker_? Aleksi, for real, tell me you didn't! Have you got no shame?"

Aleksi cleared his throat little awkwardly. "O-only a little…! I promise, it wasn't like I was desperately tailing her around the place or anything, I was just trying to have my chance to talk to me! I swear."

Meri resisted the urge to roll her eyes and instead she gave a reassuring look to Bilbo who looked slightly put off with the whole story. She also felt eyes on her, knowing that some of the dwarves were listening - or rather _eavesdropping_ \- the whole conversation, though seemingly they were all in the middle of their own business. Meri wasn't fooled. She knew they were observing them, had been for the whole evening. _'Nosy dwarves. Acting all cool, as if they wouldn't care the slightest. Yeah, right… Don't want to talk to us but damn if they're still curious to know what we got to say. This bunch of grown up men… Fine. Be like that then.'_

"Seriously… You _do_ know you can't have everything you want, don't you? If she doesn't want to listen to you or see your sorry ass near her, then it's her decision, Aleksi, and you got to respect that. You can't expect everyone to dance to your tune, you know. And you certainly can't go following people around like some-, some-, obsessed creep!"

Aleksi frowned at her. "You're being ridiculous. I don't expect anyone to dance to my tune. But right now that girl has the wrong idea of how things are and I just wanted my turn to explain what's really going on here. How else can I sort things out when she won't even look at me?"

Meri shrugged at the man and sipped her drink in all peace. She really didn't need to get her head more into Aleksi's love problems. These sort of things happened all the time to him and every single time the man took it as if the love of his life had rejected him. He would be fine again in a short period of time, he always was. All Meri could hope from him was that he wouldn't go creeping around the place anymore like some shameless hustler and create any worse image of himself. "Well if you can't help this situation, then just _man up_ and get over it. It's not like it's the first time you've been rejected, and heaven knows, it won't be the last time either. As I've already told you, you picked the wrong night to get your eyes on someone in the first place. Maybe this was a clear sign that the two of you just weren't meant to happen. Sad, I know."

"Get over it?" Aleksi sounded deeply insulted, "Get over it? Are you out of your mind, woman? _As if_! How can I, when she's right there in my sight all the time? I can't let this go, I seriously can't. I won't. I will get her to listen in one way or another."

"Gosh… Stop talking like a little boy who doesn't get the toy he wants," Meri sighed, getting tired of the whole talk already, "We're talking about a real life human being here, a person who has a free will and a mind of her own. No wonder she's running away from you - the controlling freak in you is almost reeking out of your very being! Stars, I would avoid you too if I only had the chance to! I think every creature with enough sense of self-protection would. You can't make her do a thing she doesn't want to, surely you get that too. Just suck it up and be a man about it. Leave the poor girl alone already, you've traumatized her enough as it is."

Aleksi opened and closed his mouth with no words coming out. He looked a little pained. "You don't seriously think I've traumatized her, do you?" he asked once finally finding his voice.

Meri patted his arm in a comforting way and then took another sip of her cider. "Oh honey, I think you manage to traumatize a bit everyone you come across with, whether you mean it or not."

Aleksi's face fell. "Oh. Well. Shit, man."

"I know, right," Meri saluted him with her mug.

Bilbo leaned closer to the pair, his eyes keen on something at the bar behind them. "Listen… I don't mean to meddle with your personal matters here, not when they aren't really any of my business in the first place, but if this helps the situation at all, I think I saw the barmaid coming back from upstairs again."

Aleksi straightened in his seat at once, his head snapping almost painfully fast to take a look of the bar. Bilbo was right, Aleksi was just in time to see a glimpse of his barmaid's grey cotton skirt as she with hasty steps disappeared through the kitchen door. His legs ached to go over there.

Meri gave a pained look to Bilbo, trying to demonstrate the gravity of the mistake he had just made. _'Oh Bilbo… You really have no idea what you've just done. He'll never let go of it now - and we're the ones who have to pay.'_

"Ah. Hem. _Meri_ …" Aleksi suddenly spoke in an oddly pleading tone, all while keeping his eyes on the bar, just in case the barmaid returned, "I know I've probably already used up my week's amount of favors to ask from you, but… You don't think you could…?"

Meri rolled her eyes and calmly continued sipping her drink, trying to gather in the strength and will of mind to not to give in. The silent question was right there. Meri knew exactly where he was going at and she wanted to have no part in it.

"No," the girl muttered lowly, bracing herself and looking away from the man, ready for once to keep her mind in this.

Aleksi forced his gaze away from the bar and turned his now praying eyes at Meri, all while pushing out his bottom lip and giving her his signature pouting face.

"But. But… _Baby Bear-,"_

" _No._ "

Meri struggled to avoid the man's cursed brown puppy-eyes and eventually ended up setting her gaze on Bilbo, who in turn sent her a questionable look. The girl could only shake her head as an answer to the hobbit, not really having the words to explain the odd mind control game that was taking its place right there.

"What do you mean by 'no'? Pretty, _pretty_ please?" the man next to her continued his whining, suddenly yanking the girl's hands in his and clasping them tightly together. "My one and only, awesomely strong and oh so intelligently talented, pretty Baby Bear, _puhh-lease_?"

"Aleksi stop it. _No_." Meri tried to huff at him, but secretly smiled at his praises because after all she was still a girl and always up for hearing nice things being said of her. And to be honest, it was a hilarious that the man was supposed older than her, over thirty, and yet still he was acting like a little boy.

Out of nowhere Aleksi just suddenly started fake sobbing, his face buried to the Meri's shoulder.

"But- _but_ …! This'll be my _last_ time before we take off... I can't- _oh lord_! Just thinking about how _long_ it might take until the next time makes me physically sick!" he groaned out painfully and clutched his chest, "Would you just look at her, see how lovely she is! She just _yearns_ to be adored and worshipped, and-and _I'm_ the right man for that job! I have all the right assets for it!"

Bilbo blinked slowly, trying to deal with what has just been said. He turned his shocked eyes to Meri and the girl merely shrugged her shoulders as an apology to the poor hobbit who looked more than slightly taken aback from the sudden drama.

"Would you look how sad and heartbroken she is! _Look_! I could make her happy again. And trust me, _oh my god_ , just how happy I could make her in so, so, _so_ many ways. I can't even-. _Dear lord-_ ," the man sucked in one deep shaky breath, his eyes tightly closed, "Meri, all the things I could _do_ to her!"

Meri just shook her head watching as Bilbo paled next to Aleksi and kept on opening and closing his mouth in horror. ' _Bilbo is gonna pass out any second now. His delicate little hobbit ears are not meant to hear these things.'_

"Why do you want to torture me like this, woman?" Aleksi suddenly hissed out like an angry cat, "It's too late now anyways, I can't stop thinking about her. I can't just push away the images of her pale skin under me, or her legs-," he let out a fantasizing groan, "Oh, those soft creamy thighs… Wrapped around me as-."

" _ **Alrighty**_ then," Meri quickly cut the blonde off when she sensed Bilbo's gentle ears had heard more than enough for one night, "I think we've heard quite enough. At this point, I'd do anything just to make you shut up," she sighed and downed the rest of her cider to get some extra boost in her. "Don't know what you've done to actually deserve this, but worry not, I guess I got your back on this one, bro," she patted Aleksi's head and rose onto her feet, straightening her massive coat on her.

Aleksi broke into a wide, overly excited smile and praised the gods. "Oh I knew it, I knew it! You're the best! Thank you, thank you, thank you so much! You have no idea what this means to me, it means a lot! I knew you'd take care of me, you always do!" He hugged Meri's short frame tightly.

With a flicker to Aleksi's forehead, the girl removed herself from his hold and began to move towards the bar, leaving behind a bunch of eyes watching her go. When reaching her destination, she casually went to lean on the counter and did a lazy look around, playing it cool and all. Being a woman alone in a tavern wasn't the wisest thing to do in Middle Earth, and Meri knew from past experience that things could go messy in a very short notice. She so hoped to avoid any drunken needy dudes right now because honestly, she just hated to get into fights after having just cleaned up herself. She was sure she felt someone's eyes boring a hole into the back of her head, and this time she couldn't be sure if it was coming from from the table she had just left or somewhere else.

With luck (seriously, she didn't know she had any), it didn't take even a whole minute for a barmaid to come and serve her. _'Wrong one.'_ A raven-haired maid in her early thirties with a narrow face and puckered lips, gazed at her questionably, obviously wondering what the hell was her little girl ass doing all alone in a place like this. It irritated Meri. The whole maid with her judging eyes irritated her and so she looked back at her with a challenging face of her own, not going to bother play friendly if the older woman wasn't going to.

"Oh," the barmaid cleared her throat, "Ah, are you lost little Miss?" Faked interest. The wench didn't look worried at all.

Meri lifted her chin, trying to look taller and more adult. "Not a bit, but thank you for the concern Miss," she remarked and continued without a beat, "I was actually looking for someone. There was another barmaid here earlier, one with brown hair and grey skirt. It's nothing alarming, but I'd like to have few quick words with her."

The woman blinked, as if processing her words all while watching Meri closely. "You talk funny," was what she said before a look of realization came over her face. "Oh! You were with the band of dwarves earlier, weren't you? Sittin' with the whole party of them? I'm sure I saw you. A lone girl amon' a bunch of grown men…"

Something red and beastly flashed through Meri's eyes but she quickly restrained herself. She really didn't appreciate where the maid was going at. "The other barmaid, please? I've got some business to talk with her."

This seemed to stir some real interest in the woman. "You mean Mirna? And what sort of business might you be havin' with her?"

Meri's right eye twitched but she willed her face to stay neutral and pleasant. _'None of your goddamn business, you nosy toad, that's what! Just do your job and go fetch me the girl already! Jeez, why is that so hard?'_ She forced her lips into a thin smile. "Nothing important. Just a message of some sort."

The barmaid puckered her lips in a thought, clearly a little displeased. "A message from your companions, might that be? It's not often that Mirna's services are sought over those of mine. She's a youn' little thin' that girl. There's still much growin' and learnin' for her to do… No, no. I don't think she'll be much interested in dealin' any sort business with you lot tonight," was her answer and then her gaze sought for the table of dwarves in the furthest dark corner of the tavern, "How curious though, not many dwarves can be seen around these parts. And _my_ , never in my years have I seen one so easy to the eyes either! Definitely somethin' to remember."

Meri had the sudden urge to smack her head against the counter. And hard. _'Fucking, hell. The guts of this lady.'_ She was not sure which one of the dwarves was in the woman's sights, but what she _was_ sure of was the dark intensity in her eyes when she ogled at her chosen price. Those eyes held no chaste promises for the rest of the evening. There was no way Meri would be leaving before she had spoken to the right barmaid and seen if she was as much of a freak as this older one. For Aleksi's safety.

" _Yu-p_ ," Meri replied awkwardly to fill the silence that had followed, "So... About that Mirna. You know. I'd still very much like to speak to her."

The maid frowned, puckering her lips even further. "You sure you don't want to bargain a little here, little Miss? I mean, Mirna is a nice little birdie, I'd say. Rather shy and inexperienced, but pretty enough to look at I guess. Just thinkin' it now, I don't really think she'd be the right choice for this evenin'. I doubt she'd be interestin' enough to waste much coin on. I think in few hours she'd only manage to greatly bore and disappoint your companions. And then get send away with shame, only makin' the girl feel sad. That'd be such a big waste on both sides, don't you think so too? Dwarves… They value their gold, ain't that right? They know what's worth to spend on, and what's not. I can't believe there'd be much harm if you - oh, I don't know - _happened to give_ _that message_ _to me instead of her_. If for nothing else, then for Mirna's own sake. I'd have much more to offer to those gentlemen, little Miss. Much more. We could all have a nice evenin' together. Am I right?"

Meri had to blink.

"I-, _what_?" was the only thing she could say before sucking in a trembling breath. _'Oh, my, god. What a flimsy little trollop! Where do I keep on finding these damned hussies? How is it that they find me? I mean, first Aleksi, and now her! Is it something in the way I look? Is it the way I dress? Can these thirsty hookers smell me out or what? They really think I have the time and energy to play some pimp for their bimbolicious needy little asses? Stars, give me mercy already.'_

"I really think I'll be seeing that other barmaid Miss _._ As in, _right now,_ " Meri required with a pointed edge on her tone, giving the older woman a very unimpressed look just to make it clear that this discussion was done and over with.

The maid blinked a little taken aback and opened her mouth in an obvious attempt of an objection. But before she had the time to form a whole sentence, the kitchen's doors flew open and the other barmaid came through carrying a stack full of freshly washed (still dirty and gross as hell) wooden pints in her arms. A look of confusion flashed across this younger maid's face as she took in the scene that was playing before her. Then her eyes met Meri's. The maid's grey orbs widened in realization and she was fast to dip her head and avoid looking anywhere near Meri again. With hastened movements, she began putting the pints back to their place next to the ale barrels, clearly hurrying with the task. The clumsiness of her movements grew worse with every passing second she was forced to be in the presence the two other women.

The older barmaid scrunched her nose at the pathetic sight before giving Meri a flourishing hand signal towards the other maid. "And there she is, little Miss. Just the person you wanted!" Then the woman muttered something grumpy under her breath and crossed her arms in front of her, giving a bad eye to Mirna and sending out all these evil step-mother vibes to Meri. "Mirna dear, there's someone who wants to have a word with you. Would you kindly stop playin' with the pints already and give some attention to our guest?"

As the brunet gave an unintentional flinch and turned to face the women, Meri frowned in an ugly manner at the rude older maid. The raven-haired woman was too busy inspecting her nails to notice the dark look sent her way.

Meri focused on the younger maid, ready to just forget the whole nasty existence of the other one. She willed a more gentle and friendly look on her face, though inside she was still hissing with irritation. "Miss Mirna, was it now?" she asked with a soft tone.

"Aye. Who'll be asking?" the said barmaid asked quietly and looked at her almost like she was deeply embarrassed of something.

Meri gave her a toothy smile, trying to break the obvious ice in between them. This only seemed to confuse the other girl even more.

"Ah, well, the one asking would be that cute fair-haired moron over there," Meri grinned in a sly way and nodded towards Aleksi at the furthest corner of the tavern, making both servers glance at the man, "That's my idiot of a brother… But you know of him already, am I right?"

Mirna's face went pale as she tore her eyes away from the man in question and looked at Meri with regret in her eyes. "Whatever ye think I've-, _wait_. Did ye say 'brother'?"

Meri winked and nodded at her, taking note of how quickly the paleness on Mirna's face was replaced by a deep flush.

"Uhhuh. Only family I got in this world." _'Well that's not exactly a lie.'_ "He's a good man, really. Means well, but he's not really that blessed with wits, you know, men seldom are. I believe earlier he kind of gave you the wrong picture of our-err, relationship and I just wanted to come and lay down some facts. But perhaps mainly to convince you that he's not some low class stalker, no matter what his earlier actions might've led you to believe."

"My… That's your brother there, little Miss?" the older barmaid suddenly barged into their conversation, a clear look of acceptance on her face as she studied Aleksi, "He's quite the looker, isn't he? I bet he's got a tale of two to be shared. And a few extra coins in his pocket, perhaps? He be lookin' for someone to tell these tales to, little Miss? I'm a rather dedicated listener, so they say."

Meri looked at her dumbfounded. She was sure her eyebrows were so high on her forehead that they were touching her hairline and she hoped they didn't permanently got stuck in there. _'Someone, please, smack this bitch already.'_ Meri turned over to Mirna, seeking for another sane person to share this feeling. Maybe to offer another hand to do the smacking. But the younger barmaid was looking at the ground with heavy eyes. No doubt she was used to being left in the background while working with the other maid who lived for the attention. _'Well, gosh, aren't you a shy one. Worry not girlfriend, I'll take care of this.'_

"That'd be one big no for you, dearie. Though I got no doubts you'd be more than eager to do the job, I'd say you better back the fuck off now before I really start losing my patience here." Meri took in the barmaid's shocked face with relish.

"To get into Aleksi's favor takes a little bit more than what you've got to offer him, so I'd say it's going to be a very fucking hard and useless effort should you try to get into his pants nevertheless. You see, my brother has kept his eyes on one certain someone the whole evening and you can bet your already worked-up tits, sweetie, that that someone is definitely not you," Meri gave the overly girly barmaid a very unimpressed look, before turning to Mirna's side with a much kinder face, " _You_ , however. The guy is downright smitten by you, girl, and is pulling his hair out there thinking he blew up his chances with you. I mean, it's getting overly ridiculous and I think you should go and fix the brain damage you've left him with."

There was a moment of silence. Then Mirna let out a little snicker at the stunned reaction of the older maid and looked back at Meri's rather satisfied face while the third woman was left alone to huff and puff in annoyance.

"Do ye really think so-? I mean- _uh_ …" Mirna glanced shyly at the table Aleksi was in and blushed prettily. She nervously played with a loose lock of her hair.

Meri grinned at her. _'I like this girl. Go team Mimis.'_ "Absolutely. I totally give you my approval, so just go over there and let the poor guy out of his misery already."

Mirna gave her a half-hearted grin before smoothing her dirty white apron with trembling hands. "Well, I need the coin, so got to do me job here first. Can't really make any spare time for yer brother," she muttered, averting Meri's eyes, "But-. But, I guess, if _he_ were to come to me, suppose, I could work at the same time."

Meri smiled a wide happy smile at her. "That a girl! That's all I asked for, and it's more than enough to get him stop whining into my ear like some poor kicked puppy," she winked at Mirna and watched her shyly nod. Then she made a rushed retreat and disappearing into the kitchen again.

Mirna's parting was as quick as had her appearance been and Meri was left alone sitting on the bar stool, blinking at the sudden escape. Clearly, she had been dismissed and left behind. Abandoned by a meek barmaid. And yet she felt like a champion, knowing she had once again successfully completed another wingman mission. _'At least I did what I came here to do. I'm a gift of nature. Too good to be true, I believe. I just single-handedly covered half of Aleksi's job. I deserve some reward.'_ She smirked smugly and while leaning on the counter, feeling the burning glare from the raven-haired barmaid across it. _'Ah. Well. Serves you right for being such a brainless bitch.'_

There wasn't a chance for any cat fights to occur, when another person showed up to speak with Meri.

"Ye're making me lose me coins, Miss _Kaar-hu_ ," a chuckle was heard behind Meri and the girl turned around to meet a merry looking Bofur with an empty pint in his hands.

"Bofur!" Meri suddenly grinned at him, making him raise his eyebrows in surprise. Bofur hadn't expected her to remember his name - or to use it so casually. "Why are you sneaking up on me? Trying to spy my methods with the matters of matchmaking? I'm afraid my talents can't be copied that easily - it's purely a natural thing. And it's just Meri, none of this 'Miss' nonsense!" she grinned at him.

Bofur blinked at her playfulness before giving a short hearty laugh and taking a place next to her and setting his pint down on the counter. "Came for a refill, certainly not trying to pry any of yer secrets, _Miss_ Merí. Though, I bet me hat that ye have a good few of 'em." He gave her a funny look. "Ye're making me a poor dwarf fast, Miss. Meself 'n the lads got a bet going on, 'n 'tis not looking too good for poor ol' me right now."

Meri smiled at him before carefully taking in his face and features. She felt light just by looking at him and anticipated that the two of them would get along more than just fine.

Bofur was the older brother of Bombur and the first cousin of Bifur. He was a surprisingly young-looking dwarf - not anywhere near as young as the Durin princes, but definitely still considered as a young adult among the other dwarves. Like Nori, Bofur too was built lean and short, looking like he was born a commoner. And that Bofur was, he belonged in the working class. He felt himself right at home in the middle of the crowds of the lowest cast, having an ale at a rowdy tavern after long hours of working in the mines, being covered in sweat, dirt and stone dust. He was a cheerful and hearty chap. It showed in the carefree way in which he represented himself to the rest of the world. He was grinning most of the time. His looks were just so comfortably likable and utterly jovial that one could not crack a smile back at him. Another big part of his easy-going charm was his dear age old fur hat. An important accessory that made Bofur -, well, Bofur. Under that iconic hat was hidden a nest of warm brown hair braided into two plain braids that stood in the air, giving zero fucks about the laws of gravity. It went oddly well together with his long, curled up mustache and lazy facial features.

Among the gruff company of dwarves, Bofur was like a breath of fresh air in a musty room. He was like a helping hand held for the fallen. A sound of music in a silent room. Bofur just looked like a sincere people person. One that enjoyed a good laugh and an easy going company, and needed nothing more. He was a treasure. A hidden gem. One that couldn't understand his own worth. _'And definitely not that bad looking for a dwarf. Not at all actually.'_ Meri's gaze went from Bofur's face to his chocolate eyes, and her own eyes softened immediately. _'Yup. I could make love while looking into those eyes.'_

Bofur cleared his throat with eyebrows high on his forehead again, and Meri snapped out of her little bubble. Had she spoken out loud? She quickly opened her mouth and tried to cover her little spacing off.

"Betting about Aleksi? Ha. Should've thought twice before putting your coins against him and his love interests," she lightly teased him, and continued taking in his appearance.

"Looks like the lad's not that hopeless after all," the dwarf chuckled and noticed her eyes roaming all over him again. ' _Think 'tis the third time already…?_ ' "Now, I know very well about me devilishly handsome looks 'n all, lass, but the way yer eyes keep on exploring every inch of me body is just slightly unnerving. 'tis making me wonder if ye're thinking about violating me in some strange kind of way," he smirked at her playfully and then laughed at her choked up look, "Not that I mind a pretty lass gaping at me, but think 'tis better we take it easy until ye're in clear waters with Thorin first."

Bofur sent her a wink and Meri just laughed and shook her head at him. _'Good god, he's my kind of a dwarf!'_

"I'll try to keep myself in check," she returned the wink, "No, but seriously, I'm sorry Bofur. It wasn't my intention to make you uncomfortable or send any misleading messages," she chuckled at him and was pleased to see him nodding at her in an encouraging way. "It's a little unreal to finally have a face and a voice for someone I've dreamed about for so long. I try to be subtle, I really do, but you cannot imagine how hard it is to try and suppress the excitement I feel." _'Whoa there girl. Easy with the deep profound shit. Don't want to scare away the first pleasant dwarf to talk to you.'_

The hatted dwarf next to her slightly tilted his head in confusion. "Never met a seer before, lass. Talking about a seer who sees visions of little ol' me, so no need for apologies. 'tis all new to me too. How'd those even work, the dreams I mean?"

Meri smiled relieved. She was happy he was so accepting and easy to talk to. Might as well give him some information then. "It's... dreaming. I can't really describe it any other way." The girl shrugged. "I can't really remember the faces of the people I've dreamed of. The memory-, is all blurry. Scratch those I've really met, like Gandalf. It's-. It's just really nice finally meet you. You wouldn't believe the relief."

"So ye've seen me too?" Bofur whispered amazed.

"Lots of times," Meri nodded at him bluntly, "But this is the very first time I can actually _see_ you," she murmured and once again let her gaze do a little once over on him.

"Ha! Well, bless me!" Bofur chuckled and raised his now full ale pint at her with a wide grin that brought out his hidden dimples, "Raise me drink for having the honor of adventuring in yer dreams, lass."

Meri sat frozen in her stool, completely missing the dwarf's words as he continued smiling his huge smile at her. She, as cliché as it was, found herself lost in his smile.

Or rather in his dimples. On both side of his face.

' _Jesus high above, send me help. The dwarf has dimples.'_ Her mouth went dry. _'Two fucking perfect dimples.'_ She stopped breathing. _'On each cheek.'_ Her eyes stung for not blinking. _'I can't even-. Someone save me.'_

Bofur seemed to notice that something was wrong and he suddenly looked concerned. "Lass, is there-?"

" _I gotta go_ ," Meri exclaimed then, her voice high, and she rushed off.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"So?" Aleksi pressed the girl as soon as she had taken her old seat next to him.

Meri blinked and turned her unfocused eyes to him.

She blinked again.

"So…?" she repeated, hollow.

"Well, what happened?"

"Well," the girl swallowed thickly, "I think-. What happened was... I fell in love."

Aleksi narrowed his eyes. "With _my_ barmaid?"

"Ah-?" Meri blinked once more before giving him a fed up look, "To _hell_ with you and your barmaids!" she cursed and took a strong grip of the neckline of Aleksi's tunic. " _Dimples_ , Aleksi! Goddamned _dimples_!" she cussed, trying to get him to understand. "He has two _godforsaken dimples_ on his cheeks!"

Aleksi scowled at her sudden manhandling and tried to release her small hands from him. " _Who_ has dimples?"

Meri growled out, frustrated. "Bofur! He just tried to _intoxicate_ me! I-, I had to beat a hasty retreat!" she buried her face into her hands, " _Good god_! How am I supposed to be able to control myself?"

Aleksi suddenly burst into a deep laughter and made Bilbo next to him look at him like he was mad. Even Nori, still eavesdropping, frowned at the sight, confused.

"Oh, my, god! Bilbo-Bilbo-, this is-!" the man hooted and banged his fists against the table, "Oh Bilbo, if you only knew-! I can't-!" he laughed with tears in his eyes, holding his stomach.

Bilbo pursed his lips together, not appreciating the way the man insisted calling him only 'Bilbo' when they were still strangers to each other. The hobbit 'hmphed' frustrated as he tried to make sense of the two humans and their sudden odd outbursts. He looked at Nori for an answer but the dwarf just shrugged at him as if to say 'Maybe they are just crazy like that?'.

"Yes?! What's wrong here?" the hobbit finally snapped at the laughing man, annoyed to be left in the dark.

"Bilbo! You see…" Aleksi wiped the joy tears from his eyes, "She's got this-, this _thing_ for dimples. Goes all weak when seeing them, can't breath and shit! I swear, one glance at them and _bam!_ she goes down," Aleksi wheezed out once he had finally managed to calm himself down.

Then he gave a look to Meri and saw her going scarlet behind her hands, and his laughter boomed in the air twice harder. Even Nori let out a choked snicker.

Bilbo looked horrified and quickly reached out to place his hand onto Meri's arm to give her comfort. "What do you mean ' _goes weak_ '? That's awful! Are you alright, dear? I have never heard of such a thing! Is it magic? What is this curse that's been cast onto you?"

Meri looked absolutely mortified and she set her eyes on Bilbo through her fingers.

" _Master Baggins_ ," she swallowed thickly, "I'm not cursed. I just-. Really _adore_ dimples."

"Oh," Bilbo came into realization and quickly removed his hand from her, " _Oh_."

"Yeah."

"Oh dear."

"Yeah."

"Oh dear, oh dear."

"I hate to interrupt your very deep conversation, but _what about my barmaid_?" Aleksi restlessly butted in.

Meri rolled her eyes at him, forcing herself to calm down from her little scene.

"Her name is _Mirna_ , you dumbass." _'Why is it that I know more of his girls than he does?'_ "And she is waiting for her knight in a shining armor to arrive."

Aleksi almost jumped off his seat, radiating excitement. "Really? Now?"

"Just go already, before you jizz in your pants," Meri sighed and rubbed her forehead, still feeling the chills from the whole dimple episode. "And don't you even _dare_ to glance at that other barmaid while you're onto it! That one's... not all that good in the head. She might try to take advantage of you, just to warn you."

Aleksi blinked.

" _What_ other barmaid…? There's only one for me." And then he gave her shoulder a thankful squeeze before rushing off to find his soft handed damsel. He wouldn't be lonely tonight.

Meri chuckled softy and shook her head at his actions. _'He's such a man.'_

"Is this really alright for you?" Bilbo whispered in a gossip-like way to her, looking where Aleksi had ran to.

"Huh? He's a grown man, isn't he? I can't tell him what to do."

"But he is-he is-," Bilbo gulped and blushed, "- _wooing_ the Miss and no doubt planning on continuing the night with her."

"Well, _for sure_. Why else he'd ran after her?"

"But Miss Karhu, is this not scandalous for you? You are his chosen partner on the road and I don't feel this is respectable towards you, talking about appropriate!"

"Ha. Master Baggings, that man doesn't even know what that word means! He's done this since forever, and while I admit I'm getting sick and tired of dealing with the nasty side effects this has, I really don't care a flying cracker about who he's going to jump in bed with. If the boy is happy, everyone is happy. Trust me. Tomorrow is going be a beautiful day. And I will get treats for playing his wing man."

Nori decided to join the conversation, finally growing tired of watching secretly aside. "The lad has done this several times already?"

Meri was pleased to hear the star-headed dwarf participating. ' _Oh_ , _Nori! Are you warming up to me already?'_

"All the time. He's an old maker," she told him and gave him a little wink.

Nori looked dubious. "I'm surprised how calm you are with this. Most wouldn't see it proper at all."

Meri leaned back in her chair, waving off the whole matter. "Yeah well, I'll have to admit, I'm a pretty awesome chick to be friends with. Too good for him, to be honest."

Nori and Bilbo shared a weird look. "' _Awesome chick'_?"

"As in a very open-minded and yet moral owning, almighty woman, who fears close to nothing."

Bilbo's face remained blank.

"I'm only kidding, Master Baggings," Meri sighed, knowing he didn't understand her humor. _'Stupid non-existing Middle Earth humor.'_

Nori tilted his head with a deadpan expression on his face. "Is it normal to be so _outspoken_ from where you are from?"

Meri scratched her chin, suddenly feeling uncomfortable with the subject. "Outspoken? And here I thought I was being rather polite. Oh, well. My home is very different in many ways. People don't really let the opinion of others matter that much on their everyday behavior or personal character."

"I can... see that," Nori mused with sarcasm and earned a narrow-eyed look from the girl.

"Don't mind him lass, he's like that with everyone," Bofur's voice came suddenly from behind Bilbo, startling the hobbit and the human.

The hatted dwarf made his way to sit down on Aleksi's abandoned seat between the spooked duo.

" _Bofur_!" Meri gasped with a paling face before frowning at him awkwardly, "I don't think it's wise for you to sit so close to me." Her poor heart was racing in her chest again.

Nori smirked and even Bilbo smiled at her situation. Bofur just laughed behind his half empty pint, a knowing look in his brown eyes.

"Aye, was already wondering if I'd spoken too carelessly with ye 'n said something wrong for ye to rush off like that. But then yer lad came 'n explained this whole thing with the-, with the _dimples_." The hatted dwarf smirked devilishly. "Now, while it did give me 'n him a long merry laugh, I've now come to think about the disadvantages this'll cause in the future if ye keep on getting yer knees weak in front of me. Lass, 'tis better we approach this matter with slow 'n gentle means, don't ye think so too? I'll promise to try to be easy on you, so ye don't have to go worrying about me using this as some sort of a trick card of mine. _Although,_ suppressing me irresistible roguish charm could be considered a heavy-class offense 'n a real lost to females of all races, ye should know..."

Meri let out a deep dramatic sigh and sank to her chair, causing Bilbo to laugh a little.

"I'm going to kill Aleksi for telling you. That gossiper," she muttered and downed the rest of Aleksi's forgotten ale with one gulp. The drink tasted like shit after her cider. "You really have to keep that smile away from me Bofur. I fear that the holy spirit in me isn't strong enough to make me live through this journey otherwise." _'As a respectable woman, that is.'_

Bofur sniggered behind his ale and Nori shook his head, yet had a secret smile on the corner of his mouth. Bilbo looked at her with wide eyes, wondering just where had all the decency in the world gone to.

"Aye, you're a strange pair," Nori shook his head and rose from his seat. "We shall see if you're still with us tomorrow morning," he mused out and then bit them a goodnight, leaving to his room.

"Not that bad of a first impression then?" Meri shrugged to Bilbo and Bofur before letting out a long yawn. "I think it's time for me to go get some rest too. Until tomorrow then, gentlemen," she nodded at them and caught Thorin's eyes to give him a shy nod too. After all, he was the leader now.

She received a short irritated nod back from the dwarf King and then she took her leave.

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The morning came all too soon.

Meri had woken in her single bedroom nearly having none sleep, feeling too excited for any rest. When the first light finally peeked through the window, she stood with her already packed bags, ready to take the leave. What she had with her wasn't much, only things that were an absolute must for the road-life. With only Aleksi and her on the road, they preferred to keep their bags light and fast to pack. Survival was what mattered, things that helped them to keep away cold, thirst, hunger and danger were above anything else. They didn't enjoy the idea of indulging in useless comforts. This was how they had effectively paired up for the last years and while at times it was grew irritating, it was no doubt the very reason why they still well and alive.

Most expensive things Meri owned were her horse - a very small brown colored mare she had named Lily - and her trusted scimitar she called Charming. In her bags she had her sleeping roll, some packed dry food along with bowls and such, few water pouches, some spare clothes, a small pouch of coin, small variations of medical necessities along with different personal hygiene items, few blades, and other things she had deemed worthy enough to carry with her. Perhaps she did have room for more stuff, if she really wanted to stretch her bags, but Meri felt more at ease knowing that whatever she might lose on the road was nothing she would really cry after later.

The short blonde girl threw on her big ass coat and marched out of her room. Her stomach grumbled. _'Breakfast.'_ It was time to eat and that made her happy. Eating always did. Eating and drinking.

Before she rushed downstairs to look for something to fill her belly with, she looked at a door at the end of the hallway and snorted in a very unlady-likely way. Aleksi was no doubt still sleeping behind that door with pretty little Mirna tight in his arms. That asshole was probably going to sleep in and be late. So with a little mischievous grin, the girl padded to the door and then started banging it for good five minutes. ' _Gooood. Moorning. Fuckhead!'_

It took a while but eventually the door flew open in a such a violent way that it almost knocked Meri on her ass. Aleksi stood there with his blond hair in a grand mess and face leering down at her, giving her a very unimpressed - if not a little hateful - look.

"I am. Awake. Now. _You fucking little demon_ ," he spoke through his teeth, and narrowed his eyes at her.

"Just making sure, _brother dear!_ Didn't wan't to take any chances of you sleeping in on accident!" Meri grinned innocently and batted her eyes at him. "Say good morning and goodbye to Miss Mirna for me~! And be sure to get yourself in the stables _in_ _five minutes_ or god help me, I'll so leave your sorry ass here."

Meri didn't stay to hear his answer, she skipped away to catch some early breakfast from the bar before heading to saddle up her and Aleksi's horses.

The dwarves came one by one to the stables, saddling and taking care of their ponies before leading them outside to get ready to leave. Bofur gave Meri a friendly nod and Nori too acknowledged her presence, when the rest of the dwarves just seemed to ignore her altogether. Bilbo was one of the last ones to walk into the stables and Meri helped the poor hobbit to tie his backs onto his pony when the task seemed to be doomed for him from the very beginning. Bilbo gave her a tired, but a very thankful smile for her help, explaining he wasn't used to ponies.

"Don't worry Master Baggings, you'll grow to it sooner or later," she grinned slightly at him, and then moved her attention to Aleksi who had just arrived to the stables, munching an apple.

The man seemed to glow.

"Good morning my favorite Baby Bear and Bilbo," he sighed happily to them and then moved to gently pat his beloved gray mare on her neck, completely ignoring Bilbo's protest of 'It's Master Baggings…!'. "To you too, beautiful Lisa. Did you rest good, huh? Had some good horse dreams? Ran wild and free in a wield with handsome stallions? I bet you did. That's my girl. Here, you can have my apple."

Meri jumped on her own brown furred beast, giving her horse a soft pat on her neck, before looking at Aleksi with humor. "Quit sweet talking to your horse and let's get going. The company is almost ready to leave."

Aleksi tied his bags on his Lisa's saddle and then hopped himself on.

"Lead the way then."

Meri took that as a sign to go, and ushered her horse to join the company with Aleksi and Bilbo behind her. Thorin was already on his pony, as were many others, and he gave the humans a sour look.

"I see you're still here."

"Where else did you think we'd go? You're all such a jovial and friendly bunch that I doubt we'll ever want to leave you. Oh boy, just the thought of being surrounded by this squad of rugged old chaps just makes my mind light and heart sing with joy. You're stuck with us now. Congrats, man." Aleksi winked playfully, making the dwarf King scold at him.

"Let's move," Thorin grumbled out to his company and took the lead.

Gandalf caught the eyes of Aleksi and Meri, and gave them a warm nod before making his horse catch up with the dwarf in charge. Bilbo quickly hastened his pony to follow the wizard and to ride by his side. Meri and Aleksi waited for everyone to pass them before taking their place behind the company, riding side by side. They shared a fidgety look with each other but didn't talk - both knew very well what the other was thinking. The feeling of something bursting in excitement was mutual.

The journey was now beginning.

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 _"And suddenly you know: It's time to start something new and trust the magic of new beginnings." -Meister Eckhart_

 _PLEASE NOTICE I'VE DONE SOME EDITING ON THE PREVIOUS CHAPTERS. I don't know if I ever get to finish this story but let's just say that I'm not going to give up at any point. The progress is slow but sure._

 _Be confident, be happy, be yourself._

 _With positive vibes,_

 _Miss Always Wrong_


End file.
